English · Slang Attested

have a bird

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

To freak out; to be shocked or upset.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

bị sốc hoặc bị ảnh hưởng

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

1964, Lou Sullivan, personal diary, quoted in 2019, Ellis Martin, Zach Ozma (editors), We Both Laughed In Pleasure Didn't do anything great except saw "The Beatles" on The Ed Sullivan Show and Kathy practically had a bird.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Topics: Birds

Common questions

What does “have a bird” mean?

To freak out; to be shocked or upset.

Is “have a bird” formal or informal?

have a bird is generally slang.