as in coward
a person who shows a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger
a staunch hawk during the drumbeat for war, he proved to be a chicken when it came to actually fighting it
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in yellow
having or showing a shameful lack of courage
too chicken to go through with the stunt
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in nominal
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
just concentrate on the important duties of the job and forget about the chicken stuff
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of chicken
Anne Gelhaus, Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2026
Acquiring human capital for a new enterprise is time-consuming and faces the chicken-egg dilemma.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 29 Mar. 2026
Marinated chicken and homemade meatballs are also served up on different days alongside an array of vegetables all cooked in olive oil.
—Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
Gluten-free mac and cheese and chicken enchiladas are menu favorites, the brand said.
—Jenna Thompson
march 28, Kansas City Star, 28 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for chicken
Noun
The festival food court will have offerings including sushi, gyoza, mochi, teriyaki chicken bowls, bento boxes and shave ice, with iced coffee, boba drinks, beer, sake, plum wine, sodas and lemonade to wash it all down.
—Anne Gelhaus, Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2026
Acquiring human capital for a new enterprise is time-consuming and faces the chicken-egg dilemma.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 29 Mar. 2026
Marinated chicken and homemade meatballs are also served up on different days alongside an array of vegetables all cooked in olive oil.
—Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
Gluten-free mac and cheese and chicken enchiladas are menu favorites, the brand said.
—Jenna Thompson
march 28, Kansas City Star, 28 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for chicken
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chicken
Noun
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Time constraints once again strike here, but there’s also the fact that the movie drops the plot’s true twist — that Grace is a coward — only a few minutes before.—
Matthew Razak,
Space.com,
23 Mar. 2026
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John Cornyn is a coward who has refused to support abolishing the filibuster to pass this bill.—
Jack Fink,
CBS News,
8 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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SkyEye was up over Falmouth, Massachusetts Tuesday, to capture the moment when a treasured yellow lab named Tessie was rescued from a deep backyard sinkhole.—
Juli McDonald,
CBS News,
25 Mar. 2026
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These discrepancies across the series are a function of the verdigris, orange, green, blue, and yellow paint that frames the photographs, shifting one’s perception of the color register therein, even though the plates are themselves unaltered.—
Julian Stern,
Artforum,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Because a present that is over $100, Miss Manner assures you, is indeed meant for a wedding and not a shower, whose gifts are supposed to be more nominal.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
28 Mar. 2026
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In an alternative scenario, the cap would stay fixed in nominal dollar terms, in our examples at $100,000 or $70,000 sans bumps for the CPI, for 20 or 30 years, and after those intervals grow in tandem with wages.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The problem, at its core, is that people have been afraid to leave their homes to go to work as a result of the ICE surge.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
24 Mar. 2026
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Meanwhile, some staff members, other career officials say, are afraid to voice dissenting views for fear of being fired.—
Avi Asher-Schapiro,
ProPublica,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Most predictor sites and betting services show Knueppel with a slight lead, but with Flagg fast surging since his March 5 return from a left midfoot sprain.—
Brad Townsend,
Dallas Morning News,
28 Mar. 2026
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The key is to consciously combine the shades of green, either within a color family for a calm, elevated look or with slight contrasts to create tension.—
Jana Ackermann,
Glamour,
28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Employees felt unsafe coming to work; customers were scared to leave their homes.—
David Farley,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Mar. 2026
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Hearts have melted online after a scared rescue dog bravely faced her fear in order to join her owner, with many viewers praising her unquestionable courage and determination.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The plot pivots on tiny gestures involving matters of life and death.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2026
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Each impact steals a tiny bit of the spacecraft’s speed, pushing it a smidgen closer to Earth.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Chesney became frightened, scaled the enclosure wall and hopped over the fence.—
Hannah Kirby,
jsonline.com,
28 Mar. 2026
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Scared and frightened, the only way to relieve the pain is to sell.—
,
CNBC,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Chicken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chicken. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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