1
a
: a female chicken especially over a year old
broadly
: a female bird
b
: the female of various mostly aquatic animals (such as lobsters or fish)
2
: woman
especially
: a fussy middle-aged woman
Examples of hen in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Cal-Maine Foods, the nation’s biggest egg producer, killed 1.6 million laying hens, almost 4% of its flock, and temporarily halted operations in April after detecting bird flu.
—
Bysasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 3 July 2024
If cases of bird flu are found on farms with egg-laying hens, Dresner says the specific farm and the USDA work quickly to respond to the problem and recover the farm’s healthy chickens, which also lessens negative effects on the egg supply chain.
—Claire Hoppe, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 June 2024
The meat that comes out of Niman Ranch, a network of more than 725 family-run hog, lamb, cow and egg-laying hen farms throughout the U.S., has also been raised without drugs.
—Melinda Wenner Moyer, Scientific American, 1 Dec. 2016
Not every single hen can be tested, but a random and representative selection is tested each time.
—Jess Craig, Vox, 14 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for hen 
Bysasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 3 July 2024
If cases of bird flu are found on farms with egg-laying hens, Dresner says the specific farm and the USDA work quickly to respond to the problem and recover the farm’s healthy chickens, which also lessens negative effects on the egg supply chain.
—Claire Hoppe, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 June 2024
The meat that comes out of Niman Ranch, a network of more than 725 family-run hog, lamb, cow and egg-laying hen farms throughout the U.S., has also been raised without drugs.
—Melinda Wenner Moyer, Scientific American, 1 Dec. 2016
Not every single hen can be tested, but a random and representative selection is tested each time.
—Jess Craig, Vox, 14 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for hen
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hen.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Hen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hen. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hen
noun1
: a female chicken especially over a year old
2
: a female of any bird
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