lay an egg

1. To fail, or to have one's efforts fall flat: “Jim tried to tell a few jokes, but each time he forgot the punch line and laid an egg.”

Idioms and Phrases

Fail, especially in a public performance; make a humiliating error. For example, Carol really laid an egg last night when she forgot her lines , or, as Variety had it in October 1929: “Wall Street Lays An Egg.” The term originated in the late 1800s in vaudeville and was extended to nontheatrical failures in the early 1900s.

Example Sentences

One of these is called a "brood ball," where they lay an egg in each ball, after they have buried it.

From Science Daily

“I don’t think anybody wants to go out in front of 40,000 people and lay an egg,” he said - an image late New York Daily News cartoonist Bill Gallo would have relished.

From Washington Times

“And that’s representative from every aspect of this franchise from top to bottom. And that includes our players, too. They care. They’re fighting. I know it doesn’t look like that, but I would say if you try to put yourself in their position, I don’t think anybody wants to go out in front of 40,000 people and lay an egg, whether it’s individually or collectively as a team, because then what comes with that is pretty horrific.”

From Washington Times

Habner and his wife considered selling their Game 4 tickets of the Dallas series, but went and watched them “lay an egg” to the tune of a 6-3 defeat that could cost them dearly this spring.

From Seattle Times

Rams 24, Seahawks 21: The consensus seems to be that the desperate Seahawks won’t lay an egg against the 5-11 Rams at home.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• enact
• perform
• play
• portray