bad egg

noun

1. a person who is bad, dishonest, or unreliable; a good-for-nothing:

   a bad egg who had served several years in prison.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bad egg¹

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55

Idioms and Phrases

An individual who turns out to be rotten, as in You can't trust him—he's simply a bad egg . Although egg had been used for various kinds of person (young, good, bad) since Shakespeare's day, this transfer of a seemingly wholesome food that, when opened, turns out to be rotten took place only in the mid-1800s. An early definition appeared in The Atheneum of 1864: “A bad egg ... a fellow who had not proved to be as good as his promise.” In contrast, the schoolyard saying Last one in is a rotten egg does not have any special significance other than as a way of urging others to join an activity, jump in the water, or the like. Also see good egg .

Example Sentences

There are no bad eggs in that changing room.

From BBC

"I don't really want to lock it down like Fort Knox - why are we doing that? This is for our community... just because we've got one bad egg."

From BBC

Yeah, there are a lot of bad eggs, but there are also a lot of really good people.

From Salon

"It's like they're trying to not have us around here no more, like they're trying to wash out the bad eggs and make it all posh," she said.

From BBC

"He's done a good job but he's not the only bad egg in that parliament," he says.

From BBC