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Glite Dictionary
broody hen

broody hen

5.4
A hen that sits on eggs to keep them warm until they hatch
  • noun
  • /ˈbruːdi hɛn/
translation icon : gallina clueca
  • Farmers often rely on a broody hen to naturally raise their chicks instead of using an incubator.
  • broody hen on her eggs

Examples

  • A broody hen was obstinate and uncooperative.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • All that clucking, fussing, preening, a bunch of broody hens.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • A broody hen will sit on her eggs for weeks to keep them warm and help them hatch.

  • When you see a broody hen in the coop, it usually means she is ready to hatch a new generation of chicks.

Synonyms

sitter
vsbroody hen
  • UK
1 9.8

A hen that stays on her eggs to keep them warm until they hatch

stresses the habit of sitting on eggs to hatch chicks rather than just readiness
broody
vsbroody hen
8.6

A hen that sits on eggs to hatch them

is about the hen's tendency to sit on eggs to hatch them
brood hen
vsbroody hen
  • Jargon
5.3

A hen that sits on eggs until they hatch

focuses more on the hen's tendency to sit and hatch eggs
setting hen
vsbroody hen
7.9

A hen that sits on eggs to keep them warm until they hatch

emphasizes readiness or current sitting, while the key stresses the general tendency

Surface Forms

broody hen singular
broody hens plural

Morphology

broody + hen

The meaning is directly compositional: 'broody' specifies a bird inclined to sit on eggs and 'hen' names an adult female chicken, so the combined adjective+noun meaning (a hen ready to incubate eggs) is immediately derivable. This follows standard adjective+noun composition and is cross-linguistically predictable, so a learner who knows both constituents would understand it.

Etymology

Broody hen comes from the real behaviour of a hen that becomes broody: she sits very still on her eggs, keeps them warm and will not leave so the chicks can hatch. That's why a broody hen means 'a hen ready to sit on and hatch eggs'.