Hatchery
/ˈhætʃəri/noun
A place where eggs are incubated and young animals are raised after hatching.
Did you know?In English, *hatch* was once strongly associated with the idea of opening a gate or lid, so *hatchery* literally names a place of controlled emergence rather than just a bird nursery.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
hæcc
“a gate, barrier, or hatch-like opening”
Middle English
ME
hatche
“a hatch, door, or opening; later, to emerge from an egg”
16th Century
English
hatchen
“to bring forth from an egg by incubation”
19th Century
English
hatchery
“a place for incubating eggs or breeding young animals”