lay eggs
To produce a string of failures or flops.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The director keeps laying eggs with his recent movies.”
“The team was expected to win the championship, but they laid eggs in every single playoff game.”
“Despite the massive budget and star-studded cast, the studio laid eggs with three consecutive summer releases, leading to significant financial losses.”
A variant of the singular idiom *lay an egg*, adopted into English usage through the simple substitution of the plural form.
- 01
a wild goose never laid a tame egg
Most things are inherited and predetermined.
- 02
best laid plans
A proverbial expression used to signify the futility of making detailed plans when the ability to fully or even partially execute them is uncertain.
- 03
eggs in moonshine
A fanciful notion; an unrealistic or ludicrous concept.
- 04
kill the goose that lays the golden eggs
To seek short-term gain at the sacrifice of long-term profit.
- 05
lay a finger on
To merely touch.
- 06
lay an anchor to the windward
To adopt precautionary or anticipatory measures for potential future success or security.
- 07
lay an egg
To produce a failure or flop; to do something which is unsuccessful.
- 08
lay at someone's door
To blame (a problem) on someone; to hold someone responsible for (something).
Last updated August 10, 2026