Meanings
nounheath hen (plural heath hens)
plural heath hens
- A female black grouse (Lyrurus tetrix).
The Heath-Hen flutters, (pious Fraud!) to lead / The hot pursuing Spaniel far astray.
a. 1749 (date written), James Thomson, “Spring”, in The Seasons, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, and sold by Thomas Cadell, […], published 1768, →OCLCSynonyms: grey hen
- Any of an extinct subspecies of grouse that once lived in North America (†Tympanuchus cupido cupido).
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA female black grouse (Lyrurus tetrix).
Similar
More synonyms by meaning
nounextinct prairie chicken
Similar
Tympanuchus cupido cupido
Broader
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
APA
heath hen. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/heath%20hen
MLA
“heath hen.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/heath%20hen. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “heath hen,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/heath%20hen.
Source: heath hen on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.