eggshell

English

eggshell from a chicken egg

In the springtime you might find the eggshell from a robin that has recently hatched.

The eggshell is no match for this baby crocodile who is hatching.

Etymology

From Middle English eggeshell, ege schelle, egg-shel, egg shelle (also as Middle English eye schell, ey-schel, ey-schelle), partially continuing Old English ǣġsċill, ǣġsċyll (“eggshell”), equivalent to egg +‎ shell. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Oaierskil (“eggshell”), Dutch eierschaal (“eggshell”), German Eierschale (“eggshell”), Danish æggeskal (“eggshell”), Swedish äggskal (“eggshell”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛɡʃɛl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Noun

eggshell (countable and uncountable, plural eggshells)

1. The shell around an egg.
   • 1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i], page 380:

     Like Egge-ſhels mou'd upon their Surges, crack'd / As eaſily ’gainſt our Rockes.

2. A pale off-white colour, like that of the eggshell of many chickens.

   eggshell:  

   Coordinate term: robin's-egg blue

Derived terms

• eggshellful
• eggshell blue
• eggshell rule
• walk on eggshells

Translations

object

• Afrikaans: eierdop (af)
• Arabic: قَشْر الْبَيْضِ m (qašr al-bayḍi)
• Basque: arrautza-azal
• Bikol:

  Bikol Central: arikurong

• Bulgarian: черупка (bg) f (čerupka)
• Catalan: closca (ca) f d'ou (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 蛋殼 / 蛋壳 (daan^6-2 hok³)

  Hokkien: 卵殼 / 卵壳 (nn̄g-khak)

  Mandarin: 蛋殼 / 蛋壳 (zh) (dànké, dànke)

• Czech: skořápka (cs) f
• Danish: æggeskal (da) c
• Dutch: eierschaal (nl) f
• Faroese: eggjakoppur m, eggjaskal (fo) n
• Finnish: munankuori (fi)
• French: coquille d'œuf (fr) f
• Galician: casca de ovo f
• German: Eierschale (de) f
• Greek: αβγότσουφλο (el) n (avgótsouflo)
• Hungarian: tojáshéj (hu)
• Icelandic: eggjaskurn f
• Indonesian: kulit telur
• Irish: blaosc uibhe f
• Italian: guscio d'uovo
• Japanese: 卵の殻 (たまごのから, tamago no kara), 卵殻 (ja) (らんかく, rankaku, たまごがら, tamagogara)
• Khmer: សំបកពង (sɑmbɑɑk pɔɔng)
• Korean: 달걀 껍질 (dalgyal kkeopjil), 계란(鷄卵) 껍질 (gyeran kkeopjil), 난각(卵殼) (nan'gak)
• Latvian: olas čaumala f, čaumala f
• Lithuanian: kiaušinio lukštas m, lukštas m
• Luxembourgish: Eeërschuel f
• Maltese: qoxra tal-bajd
• Naga:

  Khiamniungan Naga: vēulūikhūp

• Plautdietsch: Eiaschol f
• Polish: skorupka jajka f
• Portuguese: casca de ovo f
• Romanian: coajă de ou f
• Russian: яи́чная скорлупа́ f (jaíčnaja skorlupá), скорлупа́ (ru) f (skorlupá)
• Scottish Gaelic: plaosg-uighe m, slige f
• Slovak: škrupina f
• Spanish: cáscara de huevo f
• Swedish: äggskal (sv) n
• Tamil: முட்டையோடு (ta) (muṭṭaiyōṭu)
• Thai: เปลือกไข่ (bplʉ̀ʉak-kài)
• Vietnamese: vỏ trứng
• Welsh: plisgyn ŵy m (North, Southwest), masgl ŵy f (South)

colour

• Catalan: blanc de closca d'ou (ca) m
• French: coquille d’œuf (fr) m
• Icelandic: beingulur litur m, beingulur m
• Portuguese: casca de ovo m

Adjective

eggshell (comparative more eggshell, superlative most eggshell)

1. Of a pale yellowish-whitish colour, like that of the eggshell.
   • 1959 January, “Single-Unit Diesel Railcars for the Western Region”, in Railway Magazine, page 57:

     The ceiling panels are in off-white eggshell semi-matt finish.

2. Exhibiting the thinness, translucency or near-transparency, and fragility of an eggshell.

   eggshell porcelain

3. Very matt, having a low reflexivity, like an eggshell.

   This clear varnish is available in gloss, matt and eggshell finishes.

Translations

of a pale yellowish-whitish colour

• Icelandic: beingulur m

See also

• Appendix:Colors

Further reading

• eggshell on Wikipedia.Wikipedia