henhouse

[hen-hous]

noun

plural

henhouses 

1. a shelter for poultry.

henhouse

/ ˈhɛnˌhaʊs /

noun

1. a coop for hens

Word History and Origins

Origin of henhouse¹

First recorded in 1505–15; hen + house

Example Sentences

When she was about 5, she disappeared for hours to a dark henhouse to see how chickens laid eggs, so absorbed that she was oblivious to her family’s frantic search for her.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2010, California voters drove the foxes from the henhouse, seeing to it that lawmakers in Washington and Sacramento would no longer have the power to draw congressional districts to suit themselves.

From Los Angeles Times

“At Mason, the foxes are in the henhouse,” she said.

From Salon

“We can’t afford to go back. We have to defend our progress. We can’t let the fossil fuel interests run the henhouse again.”

From Los Angeles Times

And there’s always the frightening prospect that wild birds could carry the virus into the henhouses needed in vaccine production.

From Salon