Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

like a chicken with its head cut off

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.46 in modern English

Syllables: like a chick-en with- it-s -head- -cut off
IPA

62

Scrabble Score

29

Letters

7

Syllables

15

Unique Chars

Meaning

prep_phrase

In a frantic, disorganized manner.

Informal

Example Sentences

"His idea of it was that he had been making a fool of himself, running around like a chicken with its head cut off—such was the simile that occurred to him."
"Ken played or essayed to play right field for a while, but he ran around like a chicken with its head off."
"I've been running round like a chicken with its head cut off."
"Says one Pentagon arms-control expert: "Our setup was actually designed to act in time of general war like a chicken with its head cut off. The brain could be destroyed and the nervous system severed. Then the military muscles would just jerk in uncontrolled spasms.""
"Rushing around like a chicken with its head cut off would serve no purpose."
"That man... looks like a chicken with its head cut off!"

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

like a chicken with its head off (alternative) like a chicken with no head (alternative) like a headless chicken (alternative) like a headless chook (alternative)

Phrases

like a chicken with the pip run around like a chicken with its head cut off

Frequently Paired Words

like a chicken with the pip run around like a chicken with its head cut off

Questions

What does like a chicken with its head cut off mean?: In a frantic, disorganized manner.

How to pronounce like a chicken with its head cut off

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “like a chicken with its head cut off”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “like a chicken with its head cut off”.
Repeat and practice — Say “like a chicken with its head cut off” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.