One syllable: hen.
hen
/hɛn/
hen is pronounced hen (/hɛn/). It has one syllable (hen), with the stress on "hen". Hen refers to a mature female chicken. In everyday speech, it also appears in phrases like “hen party” or “hen house.” The term denotes a female bird kept for breeding or egg-laying, and it can appear in informal or specialized contexts. The word is short, monosyllabic, and features a simple vowel-consonant structure that learners often master quickly with targeted practice.
Hen refers to a mature female chicken. In everyday speech, it also appears in phrases like “hen party” or “hen house.” The term denotes a female bird kept for breeding or egg-laying, and it can appear in informal or specialized contexts. The word is short, monosyllabic, and features a simple vowel-consonant structure that learners often master quickly with targeted practice.
- You may lengthen the vowel: avoid turning /hɛn/ into /heɪn/ or /hiːn/. Keep it short and crisp. - You might add extra vowel onset or trailing vowel, like /hɛən/ or /hɛnː/. Practice with a light pause after /h/ to maintain the single-syllable rhythm. - You can fail to release the /n/; ensure a clean nasal closure and avoid letting your tongue linger on the alveolar ridge. - Common feeder error: attaching a tiny vowel after /n/ in rapid speech; memorize the word as a single unit. - Pronounce it in a sentence: “The hen laid an egg.” to monitor rhythm and link to rhythm and stress.
"The hen strutted around the yard, pecking at the grain."
"We bought fresh eggs from a free-range hen this morning."
"She clucked to the silent hen, hoping it would come closer."
You pronounce it with a short, lax vowel /ɛ/ as in bed, followed by a voiced nasal /n/. IPA: US/UK/AU /hɛn/. Keep the mouth relaxed, with the tongue mid-low and the lips neutral. Stress is on the single syllable; there’s no vowel reduction. For a quick cue, think “h” + “e” as in “bet” then “n.” Audio reference: listen to native pronunciations on Pronounce, Forvo, or Cambridge.
Two frequent errors: lengthening the vowel into /eɪ/ as in “hay” or rounding the lips to form /hoʊ/; both change the word entirely. Another mistake is adding an extra syllable or a soft ‘h’ or ‘n’ blend. Correct by staying with a crisp /h/ onset, a pure /ɛ/ vowel, and a clean final /n/. Use minimal pairs like hen–henna (not a natural pair) to reinforce the single-syllable pattern. Practice with slow repetition and articulation drills.
In US/UK/AU, the word remains /hɛn/. The main divergence is vowel quality; some American speakers slightly lax the /ɛ/ toward [e] in quick speech, while Southern US may have a slightly lower or tenser palate. UK speakers generally maintain a crisp /ɛ/ with less vowel shifting; Australian speakers tend to maintain a neutral, non-rhotic flow with the vowel staying close to /ɛ/. Overall rhoticity does not affect /hɛn/ because it is not a rhotic vowel word; the /r/ is not present.
Its difficulty lies in producing the short /ɛ/ vowel accurately in rapid speech and transitioning smoothly into the nasal /n/. Some learners over-articulate the vowel or insert an extra sound after the /n/. The mouth position is a relaxed jaw with the tongue mid-high, not tucked. The key is a crisp onset /h/ followed by a quick, pure /ɛ/ and a clean /n/ closure. Listening to native models and mimicking the mouth opening and timing helps solidify accuracy.
Yes—clarifying the exact stop before the nasal. In many dialects, the /h/ influences the following /ɛ/ so the vowel remains pure rather than closing as in some American accents where vowels can be reduced. The trick is to keep the /h/ breathy and short, then immediately drop into the /ɛ/ without adding glide or extra vowel. A quick drill is to repeat /hɛ/ in isolation and then add final /n/: /hɛn/.
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- US: Crisp /ɛ/ with a short, relaxed jaw; avoid raising the jaw; keep /h/ breathy but audible. - UK: Similar /ɛ/ but with more clipped consonants; maintain precise /h/ and /n/ without vowel lengthening. - AU: Stable /ɛ/ with slightly more open front jaw; keep a relaxed, non-rhotic flow; ensure /h/ is audible but light. - IPA references: /hɛn/ across regions; note minor allophonic variations: /hɛən/ in some dialects is rare but possible in fast speech. - Practice tip: record yourself saying “hen” in phrases and compare to native samples, focusing on the clean, unitary vowel sound and crisp nasal.
The word hen comes from Old English henn, related to the German Henne and Dutch haan, all stemming from Proto-Germanic *hanô. Its earliest senses simply referred to a female chicken, distinguishing from cocks. Across Germanic languages, the root carried the sense of a female bird or fowl. In Middle English, hen broadened to encompass a woman of any age informally in some dialects, though today it remains primarily the term for a female chicken. The semantic field expanded into idioms and phrases (hen party, henhouse) as poultry farming became more integrated with rural life and then modern social terminology. First known uses appear in 9th–12th century Old English texts, with later Middle English documents standardizing hen as the common word for a female domestic fowl. The modern usage in farms and households persists, while metaphorical phrases continue to evolve in contemporary English.
💡 Etymology tip: Understanding word origins can help you remember pronunciation patterns and recognize related words in the same language family.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "hen" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "hen" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "hen"
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