blue hen
/ˈbluː hɛn/US
noun
1A formidable fighter; a feisty, spirited, or quick-tempered person. Usually in plural.
2A nickname for: a soldier from Delaware (frequently in plural with the, as the nickname of a particular regiment or company composed of these soldiers) (now historical ). Later more generally: (a nickname for) a native or inhabitant of Delaware.
3More fully Blue Hen State. A nickname for: the state of Delaware.
Origin
Early 19th century; earliest use found in Robert Henry (1718–1790), Church of Scotland minister and historian. From blue + hen.
- cabbage aphid
- cabbage bark
- cabbage bark tree
- cabbage beetle
- cabbage butterfly
- cabbage caterpillar
- cabbaged
- cabbage diet
- cabbage-eating
- cabbage family
- cabbage flea beetle
- cabbage flower
- cabbage fly
- cabbage gum
- cabbage head
- cabbage leaf hat
- cabbage lettuce
- cabbage-looking
- cabbage looper
- cabbage moth
- cabbage net
- cabbage palm
- cabbage palm tree
- cabbage patch
- Cabbage Patch doll