hen party
1
3.3
- noun
- /hɛn ˈpɑːrti/
- UK
:
despedida de soltera
- Some organizers opt for a variety of small touches to provide sparkle to the hen party, while others may go for one spectacular thing to make it unforgettable.
Examples
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You know what I'm talking about, going out for a night on the tiles with your hen party T-shirts.
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Hen parties don't come around very often; you need to make sure it is a special occasion.
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This is a hen party.
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Our hen party needs some company.
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You want the kind of hen party that people tell you they loved, especially the fact that it was different.
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Last week we had the classic hen party.
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A lot of people make the mistake of believing that simply because it's got the title 'hen party' that the magic will instantly happen.
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- I thought you'd like it better than a hen party.
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One great way to ensure that the memory of the night lasts longer than your average night out is to hand out some classy hen party accessories to all the ladies to remind them of it further down the road.
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We organized a fun hen party at the beach to celebrate Sarah's upcoming wedding.
How Social
Surface Forms
Morphology
hen + party
The word 'party' makes the social-gathering meaning clear, but 'hen' literally refers to a female chicken and its use to mean 'women' (and specifically a bride-to-be celebration) is a cultural/metaphorical extension. A B1 learner who knows both constituents might guess a women-only gathering but would likely not predict the bridal/‘bachelorette’ nuance without prior exposure, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Hen party comes from the image of a group of female birds, hens, gathered together, so people began to use 'hen' as a playful word for a women's get-together. That's why hen party now means a party for a woman who is 'about to get married' and is 'women only'.