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
Opening dishes will include options such as radicchio agro dolce with goat cheese; sausages and oysters; half of a hen with pan con tomate; and Carnaroli rice pudding with kumquat marmalade.
—
Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 4 Feb. 2026
The 2019 law mandates all farms with more than 3,000 egg-laying hens cannot use cage systems in order to have their eggs sold in Michigan.
—Arpan Lobo, Freep.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The disease has forced egg producers to cull millions of laying hens, sharply reducing supply at times when demand has remained steady or increased.
—Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 20 Jan. 2026
The comings and goings of the many planes at the little field bugged the Marine Corps brass and rattled the hens at the chicken ranch that was once right about where Cold War-era bowlers would one day rattle the pins at Frontier Lanes.
—Eric Duvall, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
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Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 4 Feb. 2026
The 2019 law mandates all farms with more than 3,000 egg-laying hens cannot use cage systems in order to have their eggs sold in Michigan.
—Arpan Lobo, Freep.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The disease has forced egg producers to cull millions of laying hens, sharply reducing supply at times when demand has remained steady or increased.
—Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 20 Jan. 2026
The comings and goings of the many planes at the little field bugged the Marine Corps brass and rattled the hens at the chicken ranch that was once right about where Cold War-era bowlers would one day rattle the pins at Frontier Lanes.
—Eric Duvall, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hen
Cite this Entry
“Hen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hen. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hen
noun1
: a female chicken especially over a year old
2
: a female of any bird
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