‘A Fox in the Hen House’: Definition, Meaning and Examples

Have you heard someone say there’s a ‘fox in the hen house’ and wondered what they meant by it? Below, we’ll take a closer look at the definition and meaning and provide examples of how to use it in a sentence correctly.

In short:

• ‘A fox in the hen house’ refers to someone who intends to exploit or manipulate a situation, a person, or a place for their own personal gain.

Essentially, it means someone who’s going to take advantage of someone or something.

What Does ‘A Fox in the Hen House’ Mean?

‘A fox in the hen house’ is a common English expression that refers to someone that might manipulate a situation in their favor using fear. It’s similar to a wolf in a sheep’s pack.

What do you expect that wolf and that fox to do?

• Become predators to their prey.

If someone in a position of power manipulates a situation in their favor, they could be seen as a fox in the hen house.

For example:

• Say a college professor tries to coerce a student into hanging out with him outside of school, the way Beck’s professor did in the Netflix show You.

Even though he was married, he tried to manipulate Beck by making her hang out with him at a bar to improve her grade.

• It was completely unprofessional and unethical of him.

This professor would be seen as ‘a fox in a hen house’ by the way he uses his power and influence to not only coerce Beck into hanging out with him, but he uses it to threaten her later on in Season One.

All of the men involved in the Hollywood #MeToo movement can be seen as foxes in the hen house, particularly Harvey Weinstein.

Where Does ‘A Fox in the Hen House’ Come From? 

The phrase ‘a fox in a hen house’ was first used in The Contre-League and Answer to Certain Letters Sent to the Maisters of Renes by One of the League and Gentleman of the Late Duke of Guizes Traine, which was published in 1589.

The phrase might also be expressed as:

A fox guarding the hen house.’

The fox in the hen house is mentioned in the Bible in the Book of Luke, chapter 13, verses 31 through 35.

A news story published in the Miami News in January 1973, titled ‘Fox in the Henhouse,’ which was about the Watergate scandal.

Examples of ‘A Fox in the Hen House’ in Sentences

How would you use ‘a fox in the hen house’ in a sentence 

Let’s look at some examples:

• We’re going to have to make sure he doesn’t have any more issues. At this point, he’s a fox in the hen house. How many more sexual harassment claims are we going to let this man get away with?
• If I could choose someone else to go with the girls, I would. But no one else is available. Maybe we should just cancel the trip because Ben is definitely a fox in the hen house and I don’t want to feel responsible if anything happens.
• The boys are like foxes in the hen houses whenever we go camping. They’re always terrorizing the girls to get the better cabins. It’s really immature, but I hope it’s all in good fun.
• The priests in Catholic churches have begun to become known as foxes in the hen house these days. With all, that’s happened (and all that’s been overlooked), it’s time that something is done about this.
• I’m so grateful we got rid of all the foxes in the hen house at this company. We had to fire a whole department, but it was worth it for a comfortable and healthy work environment.
• After my appraiser appraised my house, he became extremely unprofessional and began hitting on me pretty hard. I had to fight him off. I never knew he’d be a fox in a hen house, but I reported his behavior so other people wouldn’t have to deal with what I dealt with.
• My co-worker told me that there’s a new fox in the hen house at work. I asked her how she knew already, and she told me that Tiffany from Accounting had already reported him. What a disgusting jerk!
• I’d never encountered such a fox in the hen house until I started going to church. I never knew how many predatory men went there just to ‘scout talent,’ as one man put it. I might have to find a new church.

Other Ways to Say ‘A Fox in the Hen House’

What other words and phrases have a similar meaning as ‘a fox in the hen house’? 

Here are some examples:

• Predator
• Manipulator
• Puppet master
• Operator
• Vulture
• Shark
• Piranha
• Bird of prey
• Beast of prey
• Bloodsucker

Concluding Thoughts on ‘A Fox in the Hen House’

To recap, we learned the following:

•  ‘A fox in the hen house’ refers to someone who intends to exploit or manipulate a situation, a person, or a place for their own personal gain. 

Essentially, it means someone who’s going to take advantage of someone or something.

If you ever get stuck on anything, you can always come back here to review what you learned. We’ve also got a whole library of content dedicated to explaining common English idioms. Feel free to check it out anytime you need to. It may be useful to you while you’re learning the English language.