Definition of "broody" [brood•y]

• Meditative; contemplative. (adjective)
• Oppressive: "The room's air was broody and sullen, like the season's own, full of storm clouds” ( Nicholas Proffitt). (adjective)
• Disposed to sit on eggs to hatch them: a broody hen. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "I have learned about "broody" hens, well, sort of ..."
• "Natural instincts are lost under domestication: a remarkable instance of this is seen in those breeds of fowls which very rarely or never become "broody," that is, never wish to sit on their eggs."
• "And now that Louise, 31, is 14 weeks pregnant, Posh is said to have become "broody"."