have a bird

verb

To freak out; to be shocked or upset.

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Meanings

verbhave a bird (third-person singular simple present has a bird, present participle having a bird, simple past and past participle had a bird)

present singular third person has a bird · participle present having a bird · participle past had a bird · past had a bird

  1. slangTo freak out; to be shocked or upset.

    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.

  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see have, a, bird.
Cite this entry
APA

have a bird. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20a%20bird

MLA

“have a bird.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20a%20bird. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “have a bird,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20a%20bird.

Source: have a bird on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.