Meaning & use
walking eggshells
Last updated
Meanings
phraseidiominformalfigurative
Behaving with extreme care so as not to upset or annoy someone who is easily angered or very sensitive.
Grammar: Used after 'be' or verbs like 'feel', usually with 'on': 'She's walking on eggshells.' The word 'eggshells' is always plural here.
Patterns
- be walking on eggshells
- walk on eggshells around someone
- feel like you are walking on eggshells
Since the argument, everyone has been walking on eggshells around my father.
I hate walking on eggshells at work; I never know what will set the boss off.
You don't have to walk on eggshells with me — just tell me what's wrong.
phraseidiominformalfigurative
A situation in which people must be very careful with what they say or do to avoid trouble.
Grammar: Often used as a noun-like phrase after 'it's like' or 'this is': 'It's like walking on eggshells.'
Patterns
- it's like walking on eggshells
- this is walking on eggshells
Living with him right now is like walking on eggshells.
Negotiations with the union have been walking on eggshells for weeks.
Common combinations
- walk on eggshells around someone
- We all walk on eggshells around her when she's tired.
- be walking on eggshells
- He's been walking on eggshells since the mistake.
- feel like you're walking on eggshells
- I feel like I'm walking on eggshells whenever we discuss money.
- tread on eggshells
- She treads on eggshells with her mother-in-law.
- a bit of walking on eggshells
- There was a lot of walking on eggshells before the meeting.
Synonyms and how they differ
- be careful
- A plain, general phrase; it does not suggest that another person is easily upset, which is the point of 'walking on eggshells'.
- tiptoe around
- Very close in meaning and also informal; it stresses avoiding a topic, while 'walking on eggshells' stresses avoiding upsetting someone.
- handle with kid gloves
- Similar idea of treating someone gently, but it usually means being careful with a person or thing, not fearing their anger.
Commonly confused: walking eggshells or eggshell? walking eggshells or walking on air?
walking eggshells vs eggshell
'Eggshell' is the hard outer covering of an egg, and also a color (a pale, off-white shade). The idiom always uses the plural 'eggshells'.
walking eggshells vs walking on air
This means feeling extremely happy, a very different idea from the nervous care of 'walking on eggshells'.
Practice
Which sentence uses the idiom correctly?
Choose one answer.
The idiom needs the preposition 'on' before 'eggshells'. Options 1, 2 and 3 use the wrong preposition, which breaks the fixed phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “walking eggshells”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.