hen

A female chicken (Gallus gallus), especially a sexually mature one kept for her eggs.

Adverb

  1. Hence.

Origin

From Middle English henne, heonne, hinne, from earlier henene, heonenen, henen, from Old English heonan, hionan, heonane, heonone (“hence, from here, away, from how”), from Proto-Germanic *hina, *hinanō (“from here”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱe-, *ḱey- (“this, here”). Cognate with Dutch heen (“away”), German hin (“hence, from here”), Danish hen (“away, further, on”). See also hence.

Noun

  1. A female chicken (Gallus gallus), especially a sexually mature one kept for her eggs.
    • She was a fat, round little woman, richly apparelled in velvet and lace, […]; and the way she laughed, cackling like a hen, the way she talked to the waiters and the maid,[…]—all these unexpected phenomena impelled one...

    Hypernyms: chicken poultry

    Coordinate Terms: cock cockerel rooster

  2. A female of other bird species, particularly a sexually mature female fowl.
    • In Tain, north of Inverness, staff detected 11 males and at least seven hens – the highest number there since 2011. - 2023 June 17, Severin Carrell, “Dancing Capercaillie bird makes a tentative comeback in Scotland”, in...

    Coordinate Terms: cock

  3. A female fish (especially a salmon or trout) or crustacean.
    • As spawning time approaches – autumn or very early winter in most rivers, though in some late-run streams salmon may spawn as late as January or February – the hen's colouration becomes first a matt-pewter and then a...

    Synonyms: fishess henfish spawner

    Coordinate Terms: buck cock cockfish

  4. A woman.
    • Hen, a woman. A cock and hen club; a club composed of men and women. - 1785, Francis Grose, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue:

    1. (UK, informal) A bride-to-be, particularly in the context of a hen night.

  5. A hen night.
  6. An affectionate term of address used to women or girls.
    • Don't cry, hen. Everything will be all right.
  7. The penis of a trans woman.
    • Coordinate term: cock

    Synonyms: clit clitoris femcock femdick girlcock girldick girlglock gock hen ladybits ladyparts ladystick princess wand shecock shenis strapless strap-off trannycock

  8. A henlike person of either sex.
  9. The hard clam (Mercenaria mercenaria), a bivalve shellfish.
  10. A large pewter pot used in a tavern.

    Coordinate Terms: chicken

Origin

From Middle English hen, from Old English henn (“hen”), from Proto-West Germanic *hannju, from Proto-Germanic *hanjō (“hen”), from Proto-Indo-European *kan-, *kana- (“to sing”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Hanne (“hen”), West Frisian hin (“hen”), Dutch hen (“hen”), German Low German Heen (“hen”), German Henne (“hen”), Danish høne (“hen”), Swedish höna (“hen”), Icelandic hæna (“hen”). Related to Old English hana (“cock, rooster”). Also cognate to Latin cicōnia (“stork”), Latin canō (“to sing”), Russian каню́к (kanjúk, “buzzard”). Compare Russian пету́х (petúx, “rooster, cock”) from Russian петь (petʹ, “to sing”). Etymology 1, noun sense 7 after cock (“male chicken; man's penis”).

Forms

hens henne

Synonyms

hen-bird bachelorette hard clam hen-clam hen-fish

Derived

angry as a wet hen battery hen better an egg today than a hen tomorrow blue hen blue hen-hawk bush-hen chaparral hen cock-and-hen club cock and hen cock-and-hen Cornish game hen Cornish hen daker-hen dakerhen fat hen gorhen grey hen greyhen gray hen guinea-hen guinea hen guinea hen weed hazel hen hazel-hen

Verb Entry 3

  1. Synonym of mother-hen.
    • Once he had flared up, "If ever a man was henned, it's me!" - 1943, McCall's - Volume 71, page 69:
    • Mammy henned the black workers into placing the trunks beside the girls. - 1984, Susan C. Feldhake, Love Beyond Surrender, page 52:

    Synonyms: mother-hen

Forms

hens henning henned henne

Related

broody

Verb dialectal

  1. To throw.

Origin

From hen (“hence, away”), or a variant of hench.

Forms

hens henning henned