hunker down v 1: sit on one's heels; "In some cultures, the women give birth while squatting"; "The children hunkered down to protect themselves from the sandstorm" [syn: {squat}, {crouch}, {scrunch}, {scrunch up}, {hunker}] 2: take shelter; "During the sandstorm, they hunkered down in a small hut" 3: hold stubbornly to a position; "The wife hunkered down and the husband's resistance began to break down"