What does haunch mean?
Haunch usually refers to the fleshy rear portion of the body: the back of the thigh, the buttock, or the hip area. Its plural, haunches, is the familiar collective term for someone's buttocks and is also used in descriptions of animals' rear quarters, especially horses. In equestrian and anatomical writing, a haunch can refer to the powerful area where an animal's hind legs meet the body. The word has a formal, sometimes literary tone, which distinguishes it from the more conversational words rear and backside. Haunch can also be used as an uncommon or archaic verb meaning to crouch or sit on one's haunches. Though more specific than thigh, because it identifies the back of the thigh rather than the entire limb, haunch is valued for its precise anatomical and descriptive force.
The back of the thigh, buttock, or hip area; in the plural, the buttocks or the hindquarters of an animal.
"The old dog rested quietly on its haunches by the hearth."
The plural form haunches is especially common for the buttocks and for the hindquarters of animals.
To crouch or sit down on one's haunches.
"The startled dog haunched down behind the gate."
This verb is uncommon and generally sounds archaic or literary.
The plural is standard when referring to the buttocks, the hip area generally, or an animal's hindquarters.
"She watched the cat stretch its haunches before springing toward the mouse."
A horse's haunches are the powerful rear quarter that turns movement into forward drive.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does haunch come from?
The word entered English in medieval times through forms such as hanche, from Old French hanche, meaning the hip or haunch. These forms came from Vulgar Latin hanca, whose ultimate origin is uncertain and is often traced to a Germanic root. The English word belongs to a broader family of related forms represented by hunch, hank, and hock, associated variously with a bent shape, the hip, and the heel.
Related word forms
How haunch is actually used
Haunch is formal or literary in many contexts, especially when describing the human body. The plural haunches is more usual than the singular for the buttocks or an animal's hindquarters. The verb is uncommon and sounds archaic or literary.
Easily confused with haunch
A hunch is a rounded, hunched shape of the back or shoulders, or an instinctive feeling; a haunch is the back of the thigh, buttock, or an animal's hindquarters.