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Glite Dictionary
mud hen

mud hen

7.1
A medium water bird with dark feathers that swims in lakes and ponds
  • noun
  • /mʌd hɛn/
  • US
translation icon : gallareta
  • As spring approached, flocks of mud hens gathered in the wetlands, adding to the lively sounds of nature.

Examples

  • Tall reeds circle the pool, a higher clump of green cattails near the center where a pair of mud hens glide silently, hardly creating a ripple.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The American coot, also known as the mud hen, is often seen swimming in ponds and lakes.

  • During our hike, we spotted a mud hen walking along the shoreline, searching for food.

Synonyms

coot
vsmud hen
19 8.5

A medium-sized dark water bird with a white beak and forehead that looks like a duck

is a casual nickname for the specific North American species
Fulica americana
vsmud hen
  • Specialized
9.9

A medium-sized water bird in North America with dark feathers and a white bill

is the common informal name for that same North American water bird
American coot
vsmud hen
  • US
4.1

A medium-sized water bird with a gray body and white bill often found in lakes and ponds

is a colloquial common name used instead of formal species terms
marsh hen
vsmud hen
  • Specialized
7.7

A small bird that lives in marshes, like the American coot

is the informal name used specifically for the American species
water hen
vsmud hen
5.1

A small bird that lives near water like a moorhen or coot

is an informal nickname that refers only to the American species

Surface Forms

mud hen singular
mud hens plural

Morphology

mud + hen

This is a straightforward descriptive compound: 'mud' names the habitat and 'hen' signals a bird, so a learner can infer it refers to a bird associated with muddy places. While they may not identify the exact species (American coot), a B1 learner who knows both constituent words can derive the general meaning.

Etymology

Mud hen comes from people watching a dark water bird that fed and walked in muddy ponds. They used the words mud and hen because it looked a little like a small chicken in the mud, so mud hen became a common name for the American 'coot'.