# rotten egg

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/rotten-egg
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

A person who is the latest, the last, or the slowest in a group to arrive somewhere or to perform a certain task.

## Examples

- Hurry up or you will be the rotten egg.
- We all finished our race before him, so he was the rotten egg of the group.
- The last student to arrive at the lecture hall was teased by his classmates for being the rotten egg.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.