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chicken-hearted

[ chik-uhn-hahr-tid ]
/ ˈtʃɪk ənˈhɑr tɪd /
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See synonyms for: chicken-hearted / chickenheartedness on Thesaurus.com
adjective Informal.
timid; fearful; cowardly.
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Origin of chicken-hearted

An Americanism dating back to 1675–85

OTHER WORDS FROM chicken-hearted

chick·en-heart·ed·ly, adverbchick·en-heart·ed·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to chicken-hearted

dastardly, afraid, anxious, fearful, panicky, spooked, startled, unnerved, abashed, affrighted, alarmed, butterflies, cowed, dismayed, frozen, numb, petrified, terrified, terrorized, yellow

How to use chicken-hearted in a sentence

  • A voice behind him is heard saying nearly aloud, "Don't be chickenhearted."

    The Inspector-General|Nicolay Gogol

  • Come, come, Monseigneur, you are chickenhearted; come with us.

    Cinq Mars, Complete|Alfred de Vigny

British Dictionary definitions for chicken-hearted

chicken-hearted

chicken-livered

adjective
easily frightened; cowardly

Derived forms of chicken-hearted

chicken-heartedly, adverbchicken-heartedness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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