hunker
verb (used without object)
to crouch or squat on one's heels.
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hunker
1 American
[huhng-ker]
/ ˈhʌŋ kər /
verb (used without object)
-
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.
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to hunch.
The driver hunkered over the steering wheel.
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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.
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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.
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Slang. to lumber along; walk or move slowly or aimlessly.
A small black bear was seen hunkering through the neighborhood.
noun
verb phrase
idioms
Hunker
2
American
[huhng-ker]
/ ˈhʌŋ kər /
noun
hunker
British
/ ˈhʌŋkə /
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
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
Explanation
To hunker is to crouch: to bend your body into a low, small shape. When you're playing hide and seek, you may decide to hunker in the back of a closet until you're found. You hunker physically when you're hiding or making space for other people or squatting to talk to a small child. You can also hunker figuratively, like when you hunker down in your house during a snowstorm, waiting to venture out until the roads have been plowed. Another way to hunker down is to focus on a task and work extra hard. We know hunker is a Scottish word, but beyond that its origins aren't clear.
Vocabulary lists containing hunker
I Funny
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Death Mountain
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Where Wolves Don't Die
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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.
It has struck hard at the group’s strongholds in Beirut’s southern suburbs, saying it has sent militants scrambling for new spots to hunker down and direct the fighting.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
Determined to survive, Iran might initially hunker down or seek to draw out any conflict.
From Barron's • Feb. 28, 2026
"In a five-day Test match, you should hunker down. Wafting outside 'sixth stump' areas has never been in the textbooks, and that is mainly the fault of the top order."
From BBC • Dec. 22, 2025
For flights six hours and longer, you can hunker down and make your way through a film franchise or an entire season or seasons of a television series.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 10, 2025
He wanted to fall into it, hunker down and stay for a while.
From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby
Definitions 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.
