Chicken Little
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of Chicken Little
From a character in nursery tales (also known as Henny Penny, Chicken-Diddle, or Chicken-Licken) who, when struck on the head by an object from above, panics and believes that the sky is falling
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Even if Chicken Little is right and the sky is falling, somewhere out there a roofer is about to enjoy a record quarter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
“I’m concerned that people will think it was the Chicken Little, you know, ‘Y’all said the sky was falling, and now nothing’s happened,’” she said in a phone interview.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2025
"We need to take these glaciers seriously without sounding like Chicken Little," Joughin said in an email.
From Fox News ● Feb. 2, 2022
Wheeler counsels: “Clear heads are needed to separate what is only hypothetical possibility based on worst-case assumptions” — the FAA’s Chicken Little scenario — “from what is highly probable based on real-world use.”
From Washington Post ● Jan. 18, 2022
He dumped Chicken Little into a burlap sack and tossed him next to some egg crates and boxes of wool cloth.
From "Sula" by Toni Morrison
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
