mother hen: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1Informal, Figurative
Quick answer
What does “mother hen” mean?
A person, typically a woman, who is excessively protective, fussy, or anxious about others, especially those in their care.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A person, typically a woman, who is excessively protective, fussy, or anxious about others, especially those in their care.
Informally describes someone who assumes a domineering or smothering caretaker role, often offering unsolicited advice or worrying excessively about minor details concerning others' well-being.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Identical in meaning and commonality. No significant usage differences.
Connotations
Slight tendency for more affectionate use in BrE, but the pejorative/humorous core is shared.
Frequency
Equally common in both BrE and AmE informal registers.
Grammar
How to Use “mother hen” in a Sentence
[Someone] is a mother hen.[Someone] acts like a mother hen.[Someone] mother hens [someone else].Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “mother hen” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- She'll start mother henning the new interns as soon as they arrive.
- Stop mother henning me, I can pack my own suitcase!
American English
- Don't mother hen your brother; he's old enough to make his own lunch.
- She mother-henned the entire committee through the planning process.
adverb
British English
- She fretted mother-hennishly over the travel arrangements.
American English
- He hovered mother-hennishly by the grill, telling everyone how to flip burgers.
adjective
British English
- He's got a very mother-hen attitude towards his younger flatmates.
- I received a mother-hen phone call from my aunt about the weather.
American English
- Her mother-hen instincts kicked in when she saw the lost child.
- It was a typical mother-hen response from the team captain.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Rare; used informally to describe a manager overly involved in team members' personal work processes.
Academic
Extremely rare; not a technical term.
Everyday
Very common in informal conversation, family, and social contexts to describe protective behaviour.
Technical
Not used.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “mother hen”
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “mother hen”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “mother hen”
- Using it literally to refer to a female chicken (that is a 'hen' or 'broody hen').
- Spelling as 'motherhen' (should be two words).
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, absolutely. While the image is feminine, the term is commonly applied to anyone, regardless of gender, who displays overprotective or fussy behaviour.
It depends on context and tone. It can be a gentle, affectionate tease or a more critical comment on someone's smothering or controlling nature.
A 'mother hen' implies an excess of care that becomes intrusive, fussy, or infantilizing, whereas a 'caring person' suggests a positive and balanced level of concern.
It is a fixed noun phrase that functions as a compound noun. It is conventionally written as two separate words, not hyphenated, unless used attributively (e.g., 'mother-hen instincts').
A person, typically a woman, who is excessively protective, fussy, or anxious about others, especially those in their care.
Mother hen is usually informal, figurative in register.
Mother hen: in British English it is pronounced /ˌmʌðə ˈhen/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˌmʌðər ˈhɛn/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “cluck like a mother hen”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a hen frantically gathering her chicks under her wings at the slightest hint of danger—this is the visual essence of a 'mother hen' person.
Conceptual Metaphor
PEOPLE ARE ANIMALS (specifically, overprotective people are mother hens). CARE IS CONFINEMENT/SMOTHERING.
Practice
Quiz
In which scenario is someone LEAST likely to be called a 'mother hen'?