hunker
[ huhng-ker ]
/ ˈhʌŋ kər /
||
verb (used without object)
to squat on one's heels (often followed by down).
Informal.
- to hunch: The driver hunkered over the steering wheel.
- to hide, hide out, or take shelter (usually followed by down): The escaped convicts hunkered down in a cave in the mountains.
- to hold resolutely or stubbornly to a policy, opinion, etc., when confronted by criticism, opposition, or unfavorable circumstances (usually followed by down): Though all the evidence was against him, he hunkered down and refused to admit his guilt.
Slang. to lumber along; walk or move slowly or aimlessly.
noun
hunkers, one's haunches.
Nearby words
Idioms
- British Informal. squatting on one's heels.
- suffering a period of poverty, bad luck, or the like.
on one's hunkers,
Origin of hunker
1710–20; apparently hunk (perhaps nasalized variant of huck haunch; akin to Old Norse hūka to crouch) + -er6
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for hunkering
British Dictionary definitions for hunkering
hunker
/ (ˈhʌŋkə) /
verb
(intr often foll by down) to squat; crouch
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for hunkering
hunker
"to squat, crouch," 1720, Scottish, of uncertain origin, possibly from a Scandinavian source, cf. Old Norse huka "to crouch," hoka, hokra "to crawl." Hunker down, Southern U.S. dialectal phrase, popularized c.1965, from northern British hunker "haunch." Related: Hunkered; hunkering.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper