hunker

verb

hun·​ker ˈhəŋ-kər 

hunkered; hunkering ˈhəŋ-k(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: crouch, squat

—usually used with down

2

: to settle in or dig in for a sustained period

—used with down

hunker down for a good long wait

—New Yorker

Synonyms

• couch
• crouch
• huddle
• hunch
• scrunch
• squat
• squinch

Examples of hunker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

At one point in 1958, troops there hunkered in bunkers as Communist forces rained hundreds of thousands of shells on them. —Amy Chang Chien, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2024

Then as now, people hunkered over the soil and used their hands, earning too little to feed their families, forcing many households to borrow from loan sharks. —Peter S. Goodman Jes Aznar, New York Times, 30 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

probably akin to Middle Dutch hucken, huken to squat, Middle Low German hōken to squat, peddle, Old Norse hūka to squat

First Known Use

1720, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing hunker

• hunker down

Kids Definition

hunker

verb

hun·​ker ˈhəŋ-kər 

hunkered; hunkering -k(ə-)riŋ 

1

: crouch

hunker down under the tent

2

: to settle in for a long time

hunkering down for the winter