pecking order

American  

Sometimes peck order

noun

1. Animal Behavior. a dominance hierarchy, seen especially in domestic poultry, that is maintained by one bird pecking another of lower status.

2. a sequence or hierarchy of authority in an organization or social group.

---

pecking order British  

noun

1. Also called: peck order.  a natural hierarchy in a group of gregarious birds, such as domestic fowl

2. any hierarchical order, as among people in a particular group

---

pecking order Cultural  

1. A hierarchy within a social group or community, in which those members at the top assume positions of leadership, authority, and power. The expression originated from a description of social behavior among chickens, which attack each other by pecking to establish dominance.

---

pecking order Idioms  

1. The hierarchy of authority in a group, as in On a space mission, the astronauts have a definite pecking order. This expression, invented in the 1920s by biologists who discovered that domestic poultry maintain such a hierarchy with one bird pecking another of lower status, was transferred to human behavior in the 1950s.

---

Etymology

Origin of pecking order

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

No matter how exclusive the party, there’s always a pecking order, and the coolest people—the actors—hang out in a room that’s off-limits.

From The Wall Street Journal

"You can play once or twice for your country, struggle to pick up a contract and then slip down the pecking order."

From BBC

Injury then gave Marcus Smith the chance to supplant Ford in the pecking order on the 2024 tour of New Zealand, before Fin Smith emerged in last year's Six Nations.

From BBC

The Nigerian has been limited to just over 200 minutes of Premier League action as injuries have pushed him down the pecking order at the City Ground.

From Barron's

Hedge funds are back on top of Wall Street’s pecking order.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• food chain
• hierarchy
• power structure
• social structure