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pen¹ Definition

pen (pen)

noun

  1. a small yard or enclosure for domestic animals
  2. the animals so confined
  3. any small enclosure

Etymology: ME < OE penn, prob. akin to pinn, pin

transitive verb penned or pent, pen·ning

to confine or enclose in or as in a pen

pen² Definition

pen (pen)

noun

  1. Historical a heavy quill or feather trimmed to a split point, used for writing with ink
  2. now, any of various devices used in writing or drawing with ink; specif.,
    1. a device with a half-tubular metal point split into two nibs, now used esp. by artists and draftsmen
    2. ballpoint (pen)
    3. fountain pen
  3. the metal point for a pen ()
    1. the pen regarded as an instrument of writing
    2. literary style or expression
    3. writing as a profession
  4. Archaic a feather or quill; esp., a heavy wing feather
  5. Zool. the quill-shaped internal shell of a squid

Etymology: ME penne < OFr, a pen, feather < L pinna, var. of penna, a feather < *petna < IE base *pet-, to fly: see feather

transitive verb penned, pen·ning

to write with or as with a pen penned verses filled with pain

pen³ Definition

pen (pen)

noun

Slang a penitentiary

pen4 Definition

pen (pen)

noun

a female swan

Etymology: < ?

Pen Definition

Pen

peninsula

PEN Definition

PEN (pen)

International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists

pen Synonyms

pen

n.

  1. An enclosed place

    coop, cage, pound, fold, corral, sty, close, concentration camp, penitentiary; see also enclosure 1.

  2. The means of enclosure

    wire fence, hedge, wall; see fence 1.

  3. A writing instrument

    Types of pens and pen points include: fountain, ink, common, desk, drawing, ruling, marker, artist's, calligraphic, reed, quill, steel, ball point, felt tip, roller ball, highlighter, biro (British); nib, stub, fine, coarse, Spencerian; Speedball, Sharpie, Osmiroid (all trademarks).

pen Synonyms

pen

v.

  1. To enclose

    close in, fence in, confine, corral, coop up*; see also enclose 1.

  2. To write

    compose, indite, commit to writing; see write 1, 2.

pen Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • gimmers: Top price in the female section being £ 285 for a wonderful pen of shearling gimmers.
  • scribe: But, behold, the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie.

Converse of object

  • pre-filled: Pack size of 1, 5 and 10 pre-filled pens.
  • put: I put pen to paper for what else can i do?

Adjective modifier

  • highlighter: You can highlight these using a highlighter pen at home or the child's teacher can do this in school with your child.
  • felt-tipped: You do not need any elaborate resources, but large sheets of paper and felt-tipped pens are useful.
  • colored: Don't use pencil or colored pens to fill in the form.
  • barren: Locked in their small, barren pens the dogs would turn on each other.

Modifies a noun

  • pal: Your internet quest for dating pen pal sites has brought you to the right place.. .
  • pusher: How many extra nurses, teachers and bin men could we have if we saved £ 1.6 million on pen pushers?
  • nib: I equipped myself with the finest dip pen nib I could find.
  • plotter: On pen plotters, a segment can only be modified by redrawing the whole picture.
  • portrait: They Made Magic These pen portraits build up into a gallery of special people.
  • tablet: Many of the key technologies for pen tablet computing now have been solved.

Noun used with modifier

  • ballpoint: On average, 100 people choke to death on ballpoint pens every year.
  • fountain: The museum has many examples of fountain pens from the early Waterman's to the present day.
  • quill: To the quill pen aficionado, the benefits obtained from elegant calligraphy might well outweigh all others.
  • felt-tip: As a leading manufacturer, it now also produces markers and felt-tip pens.
  • marker: With a marker pen, put a small dot on the base of the dish at either end of each root tip.
  • ball-point: You will be amazed how fast the ink in a ball-point pen fades over a period of just 30 years.