hen scratchn.
/ˈhɛn skratʃ/, U.S. /ˈhɛn ˌskrætʃ/ 1. U.S. and English regional. A long streak or wisp of cirrus cloud, often believed to herald stormy weather. Usually in plural or as a modifier. Cf. mare's tail n. 2, hen scrat n. 2.
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1868 E. Warboise Canonbury Halt xxx, in Christian World Mag. Jan. 100 Don't you see the mare's-tails and the hen-scratches? They always come awhile before the wind.
1948 Trans. Yorks. Dial. Soc. 8 48 Such a term is henscratch sky—a sky with high, wispy, patchy evening cloud.
2007 M. Lynch Minnesota Weatherwatch viii. 94 No matter if you call them mares' tails, artists' brushes, or hen scratches, these wispy cirrus clouds can be a sign that rain or snow is on the way.
2. U.S. Any of various substances intended to be scattered on the ground for hens to scratch at and eat as a supplement to their diet; spec. an inexpensive mixture of cracked corn and grains. Cf. chicken scratch n. 2a.
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1868 Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia) 3 Dec. (Morning ed.) His skeptical, old-fashioned neighbors, who are at this day using almost the identical hen-scratch that Pharoh employed on his plantation on the Nile.
1907 Malvern (Iowa) Leader 25 Apr. (advt.) The best ChickFeed and HenScratch 2c lb at Gibson's.
2006 L. Crum Moonblind x. 96 A flock of quail..pecked briskly at the remains of the hen scratch Blue had thrown to the chickens this morning.
3. U.S. colloquial. Now usually in form henscratch. Cramped, untidy, or illegible handwriting; a scratch-like mark or series of marks. Cf. chicken scratch n. 1.
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society > communication > writing > handwriting or style of > [noun] > bad handwriting
cacography1656
hen scratch1884
1884 Cleveland (Ohio) Herald 14 Apr. 4/6 An Easter card in a Superior street stationer's window represents a hen making hen scratches on a sheet of paper, after having dipped her foot in ink. The hen-scratches read as follows: [etc.].
1914 Christian Cynosure Nov. 209/2 They used certain cabalistic symbols, which all of the laborers understood, but which were so much ‘henscratch’ to any one else.
1942 Sunday Reg. (Beckley, W. Va.) 25 Jan. 20/2 On one side of the paper, written in a doctor's typical hen-scratch hand, was a notation that he was to be reminded to call the state's attorney general for a conference.
1979 Cohasset (Mass.) Mariner 6 Sept. a1/2 All answers must be typed or printed clearly. If we can't read your henscratch, we mark you wrong.
2005 A. Strieber Little Town Lies xix. 151 She couldn't decipher his henscratch.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1868