Chicken has 10 different meanings across 3 categories:
Noun · Adjective · Proper Noun
a domestic fowl bred for flesh or eggs; believed to have been developed from the red jungle fowl
"The farmer walked out to check on the flock of chickens before feeding them their morning grain."
a foolhardy competition; a dangerous activity that is continued until one competitor becomes afraid and stops
"The dare to jump off the roof without a parachute turned out to be nothing more than chicken, since only the first person who refused to go through would survive."
A domestic fowl, Gallus gallus, especially when young.
"The farmer counted thirty baby chickens huddled under the warm lamp in the coop."
plural of chick
In plain English: A chicken is a small, domesticated bird that people raise for its meat and eggs.
"She ordered grilled chicken for dinner."
Usage: Use "chicken" as a noun to refer to the young domestic fowl known as chicks when speaking in the plural form, though this specific usage is less common than referring to the adult birds or the meat. In everyday conversation, people almost always mean the adult bird or the food unless explicitly discussing baby birds.
To avoid a situation one is afraid of.
"I didn't want to ask my boss for a raise, so I decided not to chicken out and just sent an email instead."
In plain English: To chicken is to act cowardly and avoid doing something scary or difficult because you are afraid.
"She refused to chicken out of her plans even though she was scared."
Usage: To chicken means to act cowardly or refuse to face a frightening situation. Use this verb when describing someone who backs down out of fear rather than confronting a challenge.
easily frightened
"Don't be such a chicken; you should just go up and ask her for directions."
Cowardly.
"Don't be such a chicken; you have to face your fears even if it scares you."
In plain English: Chicken means being too scared to do something risky or difficult.
"The chicken soup was too salty for my taste."
Usage: Use the adjective chicken to describe someone who acts out of fear or avoids taking risks, often in informal speech. You can say something like "Don't be chicken and try that jump," meaning do not let cowardice stop you.
A census-designated place in Alaska.
"The flight from Anchorage to Chicken was delayed due to heavy snowfall on the northern route."
The word "chicken" comes from Old English ċicen, but its exact origins remain uncertain. It may have evolved from a West Germanic root meaning "chicken," or it could be a compound formed by combining "cock" with the suffix "-en.