chicken
/ˈtʃɪkɪn/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈtʃɪkɪn/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈchi-kᵊn sometimes -kᵊŋ/ (ame, mw) · /ˈtʃɪk.ɪn/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈtʃɪk.ɪn/ (ame, ipa)
chicken — noun
- chickensingular
- chickensplural
1. a farm bird that people keep to get eggs from or to eat. The word is also used f
a farm bird that people keep to get eggs from or to eat. The word is also used for the food that comes from cooking this bird.
The chickens in Hana's garden give six eggs every morning.
countable: the live bird
Kofi cooked chicken with rice and beans for the family.
uncountable: the meat as food
Leila bought three young chickens from the farm last week.
The chicken soup that Aunt Rosa makes is always very good.
Ravi keeps chickens for eggs and sells the extra meat at the market.
用法筆記
Countable when referring to the living bird (three chickens). Uncountable when referring to the meat (some chicken). When ordering food, 'chicken' without an article means the meat.
常見錯誤
2. a person who does not have enough courage to do something difficult or frighteni
a person who does not have enough courage to do something difficult or frightening
Tomás was called a chicken by other kids for not jumping off the wall.
informal: called someone a chicken
Yara admitted she was a chicken and asked her cousin to try the ride first.
Don't be a chicken, Wen — the roller coaster is perfectly safe!
Noa felt like a chicken when he could not bring himself to speak in class.
- coward
stronger and more negative; can be used in formal contexts
- scaredy-cat
more playful and childish; very informal
- wimp
informal; suggests weakness more than fear
用法筆記
Strongly informal. Avoid in formal writing or polite conversation. Often used playfully among friends, but can sound insulting if used seriously with strangers.
常見錯誤
chicken — adjective
- chickenpositive
- more chickencomparative
- most chickensuperlative
1. lacking the courage to do something that involves risk or discomfort; not brave
lacking the courage to do something that involves risk or discomfort; not brave enough to try
Theo felt too chicken to join the others on the high diving board.
predicative: feel chicken
Rohan was chicken about telling his parents about the broken window.
pattern: chicken about [something]
Beatriz is not chicken — she just does not like dangerous games.
The stray cat was chicken around strangers and always hid behind the shed.
用法筆記
Only used predicatively (after a linking verb like 'be', 'feel', 'seem'), never before a noun. You can say 'He is chicken' but NOT 'a chicken man' for the adjective meaning. For attributive use, choose 'cowardly' or 'timid' instead.
常見錯誤
chicken — verb
- chickenpresent simple I / you / we / they
- chickens3rd person singular
- chickening-ing form
- chickenedpast simple
1. to decide not to do something you planned because you suddenly feel too afraid
to decide not to do something you planned because you suddenly feel too afraid
Diego wanted to try the race but chickened out at the last second.
phrasal verb: chicken out
Aiko chickened out of the climb when she saw how steep the path was.
pattern: chicken out of [something]
Bao was about to ask a question but chickened out and stayed quiet.
The group planned to camp in the forest, but Oskar chickened out and went home.
- back out
similar meaning but can be for any reason (not just fear); neutral register
- pull out
more neutral; can mean withdrawing from an arrangement for practical reasons
- get cold feet
idiomatic; specifically about losing confidence or becoming nervous before an event
用法筆記
Nearly always used with the particle 'out' as the phrasal verb 'chicken out'. The bare form 'chicken' without 'out' is very rare in modern English and may sound unnatural. Can also take 'of' before the thing avoided: 'chickened out of the race.'