hen

American  

[hen] / hɛn /

noun

1. a female chicken.

   Our hens only recently started laying, but these fresh eggs were worth the wait!

2. the female of any bird, especially a gallinaceous bird.

   The mallard drakes are splendidly colorful while the hens are camouflaged in drab plumage.

3. the female of certain marine creatures, including lobsters and salmon.

   I prefer a hen when making lobster bisque, as the dark red roe enhances both flavor and color.

4. Informal: Sometimes Offensive. a usually middle-aged or older woman, especially one who is considered to be petty or gossipy.

   Let’s get out of here and leave the hens to their blather.

5. Informal. a female in attendance at a hen party.

   The incident at the restaurant occurred hours after our party was over and we’d all gone home, but all of us hens were brought in for questioning the next morning.

6. British and Australian Informal. the bride-to-be at a bachelorette party.

   A toast to Vera, the beautiful hen, who’s flying our coop in less than a fortnight!

7. Scots Informal. an affectionate or familiar term of address to a girl or woman.

   That’s lovely, hen, thank you.

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hen British  

/ hɛn /

noun

1. the female of any bird, esp the adult female of the domestic fowl

2. the female of certain other animals, such as the lobster

3. informal a woman regarded as gossipy or foolish

4. dialect a term of address (often affectionate), used to women and girls

5. extremely rare

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hen Idioms  

1. see mad as a hornet (wet hen); scarce as hen's teeth.

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Other Word Forms

• henlike adjective
• hennish adjective

Etymology

Origin of hen

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English hen(n) (compare Old English hana “cock”); cognate with German Henne; akin to Latin canere “to sing”; chant ( def. ), charm ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Chickens and hens are incredibly resilient and should typically cope well with a bit of cold weather, the British Hen Welfare Trust says.

From BBC

During the avian flu outbreak, millions of hens were destroyed across the country.

From MarketWatch

The government is also looking at ending the use of "confinement systems" in farming including caged hens and pig farrowing crates, which are used to contain sows during birth and nursing.

From BBC

Avian flu wiped out millions of hens, quadrupling egg prices overnight.

From MarketWatch

Rescued gobblers and hens roamed while visitors to the six-acre spread were able to pet and feed them.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• chicken
• duck
• fowl
• geese
• pheasant
• pigeon