pecking order

English

Etymology

Calque of German Hackordnung.

Noun

pecking order (plural pecking orders)

1. (zoology) The natural hierarchy of social statusand dominance occurring in a group of birds.
2. The usually informal hierarchy of authority or command, often partial or approximate, as determined by the especially natural propensity for domination of different members of a specific group over each other, such as older brothers and sisters over their younger siblings.

Translations

The usually informal hierarchy of authority or command, often partial or approximate

• Danish: hakkeorden c
• Dutch: pikorde (nl) f
• Finnish: nokkimisjärjestys (idiomatic)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: Hackordnung (de) f
• Icelandic: goggunarröð f
• Russian: неофициа́льная иера́рхия f (neoficiálʹnaja ijerárxija), сложи́вшийся поря́док подчине́ния m (složívšijsja porjádok podčinénija); (birds) поря́док клева́ния m (porjádok klevánija)