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Like a chicken with its head cut off

What's the meaning of the phrase 'Like a chicken with its head cut off'?

In a frenzied manner.

What's the origin of the phrase 'Like a chicken with its head cut off'?

Poultry may sometimes run around frenziedly for several minutes after decapitation.

The phrase was known in the USA by the late 19th century. It is recorded in print being used as a simile from the 1880s; for example, this piece about an escaped prisoner in The Atlanta Constitution, July 1882:

“Finding himself free from the heavy shackles, he bounced to his feet and commenced darting about like a chicken with its head cut off…”

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Gary Martin is a writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.

Gary Martin

Writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.
Like a chicken with its head cut off

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