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
Embracing a family farm model and raising hens on pasture also protects birds from avian influenza.
—
Pete & Gerry's Contributor, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025
Eighty-five percent of table eggs in this country come from hens kept in industrial houses that contain 50,000 to 350,000 hens each.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2025
Earlier this year, the steep rise in prices and issues with supply as massive flocks of egg-laying hens were being killed in bird flu outbreaks also caused stores to run out of eggs and limit the number of cartons as people were stockpiling and in some cases panic-buying eggs.
—Betty Lin-Fisher, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
The moveable tractor coop is in the field today, and the heirloom hens are inside, fertilizing the organic soil and eating insects.
—Scott Clark As Told To Betsy Andrews, Saveur, 3 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hen
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Pete & Gerry's Contributor, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025
Eighty-five percent of table eggs in this country come from hens kept in industrial houses that contain 50,000 to 350,000 hens each.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2025
Earlier this year, the steep rise in prices and issues with supply as massive flocks of egg-laying hens were being killed in bird flu outbreaks also caused stores to run out of eggs and limit the number of cartons as people were stockpiling and in some cases panic-buying eggs.
—Betty Lin-Fisher, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
The moveable tractor coop is in the field today, and the heirloom hens are inside, fertilizing the organic soil and eating insects.
—Scott Clark As Told To Betsy Andrews, Saveur, 3 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hen
Cite this Entry
“Hen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hen. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hen
noun1
: a female chicken especially over a year old
2
: a female of any bird
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