chicken
Other forms: chickens
A chicken is a domesticated bird that is raised on farms for meat or eggs. Many cities allow people to keep a few chickens in their yards as pets and egg layers.
You can talk about your pet chicken with its brown feathers and funny feet, but you might also use the word chicken to order dinner at a restaurant: "I'll have the chicken." When a person is described as a chicken, it means she's easily scared or a coward. The Old English cicen, "young fowl," is the source of chicken. Calling someone chicken for being frightened has been hurting feelings since the 14th century.
Definitions of chicken
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a domestic fowl bred for flesh or eggs; believed to have been developed from the red jungle fowl
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synonyms:
Gallus gallus
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types:
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biddy, chick
young bird especially of domestic fowl
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cock, rooster
adult male chicken
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capon
castrated male chicken
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biddy, hen
adult female chicken
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spring chicken
a young chicken having tender meat
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Rhode Island red
American breed of heavy-bodied brownish-red general-purpose chicken
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Dominick, Dominique
American breed of chicken having barred grey plumage raised for meat and brown eggs
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Orpington
English breed of large chickens with white skin
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cockerel
a young domestic cock; not older than one year
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cackler
a hen that has just laid an egg and emits a shrill squawk
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brood hen, broody, broody hen, setting hen, sitter
a domestic hen ready to brood
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mother hen
a hen with chicks
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layer
a hen that lays eggs
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pullet
young hen usually less than a year old
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type of:
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domestic fowl, fowl, poultry
a domesticated gallinaceous bird thought to be descended from the red jungle fowl
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the flesh of a chicken used for food
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types:
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broiler
flesh of a small young chicken not over 2 1/2 lb suitable for broiling
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capon
flesh of a castrated male chicken
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frier, fryer, pullet
flesh of a medium-sized young chicken suitable for frying
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roaster
flesh of a large young chicken over 3 1/2 lb suitable for roasting
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spatchcock
flesh of a chicken (or game bird) split down the back and grilled (usually immediately after being killed)
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hen
flesh of an older chicken suitable for stewing
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Oven Stuffer, Oven Stuffer Roaster
a brand name for a roasting chicken
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type of:
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poultry
flesh of chickens or turkeys or ducks or geese raised for food
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easily frightened
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synonyms:
chickenhearted, lily-livered, white-livered, yellow, yellow-bellied
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a person who lacks confidence, is irresolute and wishy-washy
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a foolhardy competition; a dangerous activity that is continued until one competitor becomes afraid and stops
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type of:
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competition, contest
an occasion on which a winner is selected from among two or more contestants
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competition, contest
Pronunciation
US
/ˈtʃɪkən/
UK
/ˈtʃɪkɪn/
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