# Now woke scientists want to change the dictionary definition of CHICKEN – to remove its meaning as ‘a coward’

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/now-woke-scientists-want-to-change-the-dictionary-definition-of-chicken-to-remove-its-meaning-as-a-coward/
- Published: 2026-11-10T15:59:26+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-10T16:26:18+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/sciencetech/article-16280879/woke-scientists-change-dictionary-definition-CHICKEN.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Elections, Politics, Research, Science, World

## Key points

- Peta wants the OED to remove “coward” as a definition of chicken.
- The group says the wording reinforces harmful attitudes towards birds.
- It cites chickens’ social behaviour and intelligence.

## Summary

Peta has asked the Oxford English Dictionary to remove the informal definition of “chicken” meaning a faint-hearted person or coward. The group says the usage unfairly portrays chickens, reinforces the idea that animals are inferior to humans and can help justify their treatment in farming.

Peta’s vice president Elisa Allen argues that chickens can be curious and brave, citing hens that protect their young, roosters that defend their flocks, and birds’ ability to recognise more than 100 faces. The group also says chickens use dozens of vocalisations and form complex social hierarchies. Its letter links the dictionary wording to intensive farming and says more than one billion chickens are killed for food in the UK each year; the article does not report a response from the dictionary.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.