English idiom

walk on eggshells

Register · Informal CEFR B2

Post

Figurative meaning

to act very carefully to avoid upsetting someone

Why this phrase?

Treading on eggshells, which crack at the lightest step, pictures extreme caution around a fragile situation.

Example

“Everyone walks on eggshells around him after the incident.”

Dictionary details

Component words

egg

Tags

Expressions connected by reviewed component words or topic tags.

egg on your face

to be embarrassed after being publicly wrong

nest egg

a sum of money saved for retirement or the future

chicken-and-egg problem

a situation in which two things each depend on the other, so neither can get started

kill the goose that lays the golden eggs

to destroy a reliable source of future profit through greed or short-term thinking

test the waters

to try something cautiously before committing fully to it

think twice

to reconsider an action carefully before doing it

Source methodology

Meanings, register, CEFR, and examples come from the reviewed dictionary record. Expression notes may describe a reviewed present-day word picture or a background note; they are not presented as verified etymology.

External links

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