hunker

¹

[huhng-ker]

verb (used without object)

1. to crouch or squat on one's heels.

   He hunkered to be at eye level with his dog.

   I can’t hunker with this bad knee.

2. 1. to hunch.

      The driver hunkered over the steering wheel.

   2. to hide, hide out, or take shelter, often for just a few hours or less, as from a pursuer or a storm.

      The escaped convicts hunkered in a cave in the mountains.

   3. to settle in to the safety of one’s home or other designated shelter for a potentially prolonged time, as would be necessitated by a natural disaster or an outbreak of a contagious disease.

      Many local residents hunkered in the basement of the fire station.

3. Slang.,  to lumber along; walk or move slowly or aimlessly.

   A small black bear was seen hunkering through the neighborhood.

noun

1. hunkers, one's haunches.

verb phrase

1. hunker down.,  hunker down.

Hunker

²

[huhng-ker]

noun

1. a member of the conservative faction in the Democratic Party in New York State, 1845–48.

hunker

/ ˈhʌŋkə /

verb

1. to squat; crouch

Other Word Forms

• Hunkerism noun
• Hunkerous adjective
• Hunkerousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of hunker¹

First recorded in 1710–20; apparently hunk (perhaps nasalized variant of huck “haunch”; akin to Old Norse hūka “to crouch”) + -er ⁶

Origin of hunker²

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45; origin uncertain

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. on one's hunkers,

   1. British Informal. squatting on one's heels.

   2. suffering a period of poverty, bad luck, or the like.

Example Sentences

Instead of making a run for it, he resolves to hunker down until the heat is off.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Gee Gee Rosell, who lives on Hatteras Island, stopped by her store Buxton Village Books on Wednesday to unpack a new shipment and manage orders from residents before they hunker down.

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The assailant was shot dead by British police but not before he stabbed and killed a man and tried to barge into the synagogue itself, where worshipers were hunkered down.

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"They need heat and energy to fly so what we are seeing at the moment is them taking advantage of the good weather to find the right place to hunker down for winter."

Read more on BBC

Fresh food and bread were wiped off supermarket shelves as residents prepared to hunker down, while shop owners piled sandbags in front of their stores.

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