hen and chickens
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Large and small pewter pots.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “hen and chickens” mean?
Large and small pewter pots.
Is “hen and chickens” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.