fen

See also: fēn, fén, fěn, and fèn

English

Schematic illustration of a fen

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɛn/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛn

Etymology 1

From Middle English fen, fenne, from Old English fenn (“fen; marsh; mud; dirt”), Proto-West Germanic *fani, from Proto-Germanic *fanją (compare West Frisian fean, Dutch veen, German Fenn, Norwegian fen), from Proto-Indo-European *pen- (“bog, mire”). Compare Middle Irish en (“water”), enach (“swamp”), Old Prussian pannean (“peat-bog”), Sanskrit पङ्क (paṅka, “marsh, mud, mire, slough”).

Noun

fen (plural fens)

1. A type of wetland fed by ground water and runoff, containing peat below the waterline, characteristically alkaline.
   • 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene ii], page 4:

     Caliban: As wicked dewe, as ere my mother bruſh'd / With Rauens feather from vnwholeſome Fen / Drop on you both : A Southweſt blow on yee, / And bliſter you all ore.

   • 1807, William Wordsworth, "England, 1802," collected in Poems (1807):

     Milton! thou shouldst be living at this hour:

     England hath need of thee: she is a fen

     Of stagnant waters […]

   • 1842, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Slave in the Dismal Swamp, from Poems on Slavery:

     In dark fens of the Dismal Swamp / The hunted Negro lay; [...]

   • 1986, John le Carré, A Perfect Spy:

     He was freezing to death in the flat mud of the Suffolk fens, too proud to go home without a catch.

Derived terms

• fenberry
• fen cricket
• fen fire
• fenland
• fenlike
• fenman
• fen nettle
• fennish
• fennish
• fenny
• Fenway
• fenwoman
• Mareham le Fen
• Silicon Fen

 

Translations

type of wetland

• Bulgarian: мочурище n (močurište)
• Catalan: mollera (ca) f, torbera baixa f
• Czech: bažina (cs) f, močál m
• Esperanto: marĉejo
• Estonian: madalsoo
• Finnish: letto (fi)
• Hungarian: mocsár (hu), láp (hu)
• Irish: moing f
• Japanese: フェン (fen)

• Latin: lāma f
• Plautdietsch: Somp m
• Persian: لشاب‎ (fa) (lešâb)
• Portuguese: paul (pt) m, turfeira f
• Russian: боло́то (ru) n (bolóto)
• Scottish Gaelic: boglach f
• Slovene: barje n
• Spanish: turbera f
• Tagalog: tunlak, tanlak, tarlak

See also

• bog
• everglade
• marsh
• swamp
• vinewed
• wetland

Etymology 2

Noun

fen (plural fens)

2. A unit of currency in China, one-hundredth of a yuan.

Translations

unit of Chinese currency

• Chinese: 分 (zh)
• Czech: fen (cs) m

• Hungarian: fen (hu)

Etymology 3

From fan, by analogy with men as the plural of man.

Noun

fen pl (normally plural, singular fan)

1. (dated, fandom slang) Fans; a plural form used by enthusiasts of science fiction, fantasy, and anime, partly from whimsy and partly to distinguish themselves from fans of sport, etc.
   • 1951 May 21, Sargeant, Winthrop, “Through the Interstellar Looking Glass”, in Life‎^[1], volume 30, number 21, page 127:

     Sad to relate, some of the European delegates were probably insurgents rather than true fen. […] But the Europeans could be counted on to take the long view, and many of them would probably turn out to be real fen and fenne after all.

   • 2016 September 3, lurkertype, “Worldcon 75 Chair Responds”, in File 770‎^[2], Comments:

     So I’m glad the attached hotel block is entirely reserved for disabled fen! Traveling on mass transit is tiring even when everything’s up to code.

Coordinate terms

• fenne

Derived terms

Derived terms

• actifen
• confen
• eofen
• fakefen
• femme fen
• femfen
• femmefen

• fringefen
• litfen
• mediafen
• neofen
• passifen
• stfen
• trufan
• zinefen

Etymology 4

Compare fend.

Interjection

fen

1. (obsolete) Used in children's games to prevent or forestall another player's action; a check or bar.

Etymology 5

From Middle English *vene, Kentish variant of *fine, from Old English fyne (“moisture, mold, mildew”), from Proto-Germanic *funiz, *fun- (“moisture, mold”); compare vinew.

Noun

fen (uncountable)

1. (obsolete) A kind of mildew that grows on hops.
   • 1769, The Complete Farmer: Or, a General Dictionary of Husbandry‎^[3], second edition, page 339:

     […] whereby the ſtagnating ſap corrupts, and breeds mouldy fen, which often ſpoils whole tracts of, till then, flouriſhing hop-grounds.

   • 1808, Thomas Potts, The British Farmer's Cyclopaedia or, Complete Agricultural Dictionary‎^[4], Scatcherd and Letterman, page 96:

     Among these are reckoned the wire worm; the flea, and the fly; the fen or mould; the mildew ; and what are usually called fire blasts.

   • 1848, John Marius Wilson, editor, The Rural Cyclopedia‎^[5], volume 2, A. Fullarton, page 698:

     The mould, the fen, or the mouldy-fen, prevails more on hop-grounds which are low, moist, and sheltered, than on such as are high, dry, and open […]

Anagrams

• ENF, nef

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Catalan

Verb

fen

1. third-person singular present indicative form of fendre
2. second-person singular imperative form of fendre

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Chuukese

Adjective

fen

1. holy

Synonyms

• pin

Adverb

fen

1. past tense marker for verbs
2. already

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Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɛn]
• Rhymes: -ɛn

Etymology 1

Noun

fen m

1. fen (unit of currency in China, one-hundredth of a yuan).
   • 1962, Časopis Národního muzea, volume 131, page 165:

     Čínská poštovní správa v roce 1961 vydala ke Dni armády, tj. k 1. srpnu 1961 dvě známky, a to v hodnotách 8 fenů a 10 fenů […]

     (please add an English translation of this quote)

Declension

Declension

	singular	plural
nominative	fen	feny
genitive	fenu	fenů
dative	fenu	fenům
accusative	fen	feny
vocative	fene	feny
locative	fenu	fenech
instrumental	fenem	feny

Etymology 2

Noun

fen

1. genitive plural of fena

Further reading

• fen in Kartotéka Novočeského lexikálního archivu

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Dalmatian

Etymology

From Latin fīnitus. Compare Italian fino.

Adjective

fen (feminine faina)

1. fine
2. subtle
3. pure

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Faroese

Etymology

From Old Norse fen, from Proto-Germanic *fanją.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /feːn/
• Rhymes: -eːn

Noun

fen n (genitive singular fens, plural fen)

1. bog, quagmire

Declension

Declension of fen
n3	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	fen	fenið	fen	fenini
accusative	fen	fenið	fen	fenini
dative	feni	feninum	fenum	fenunum
genitive	fens	fensins	fena	fenanna

Derived terms

• fenbressa
• fendíki
• fenjutur

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Friulian

Etymology

From Latin fēnum,from faenum.

Noun

fen m (plural fens)

1. hay

Related terms

• fenoli

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Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɛn]

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: fen
• Rhymes: -ɛn

Etymology 1

From Proto-Finno-Ugric *pänɜ (“grindstone; grind”).

Verb

fen

1. (transitive) to sharpen, to whet, to hone

   Synonyms: köszörül, élesít, élez

2. (dialectal) to rub, to smear

   Synonyms: ken, dörgöl

Conjugation

conjugation of fen

			1st person sg	2nd person sg informal	3rd person sg, 2nd p. sg formal	1st person pl	2nd person pl informal	3rd person pl, 2nd p. pl formal
Indica­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	fenek	fensz	fen	fenünk	fentek	fennek
		Def.	fenem	fened	feni	fenjük	fenitek	fenik
		2nd-p. o.	fenlek	―
	Past	Indef.	fentem	fentél	fent	fentünk	fentetek	fentek
		Def.	fentem	fented	fente	fentük	fentétek	fenték
		2nd-p. o.	fentelek	―
Condi­tional mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	fennék	fennél	fenne	fennénk	fennétek	fennének
		Def.	fenném	fennéd	fenné	fennénk (or fennők)	fennétek	fennék
		2nd-p. o.	fennélek	―
Sub­junc­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	fenjek	fenj or fenjél	fenjen	fenjünk	fenjetek	fenjenek
		Def.	fenjem	fend or fenjed	fenje	fenjük	fenjétek	fenjék
		2nd-p. o.	fenjelek	―
Infinitive	fenni		fennem	fenned	fennie	fennünk	fennetek	fenniük
Other nonfinite verb forms			Verbal noun	Present participle	Past participle	Future part.	Adverbial part.	Potential
			fenés	fenő	fent	fenendő	fenve	fenhet

Derived terms

• fenés
• fenyeget

 

Compound words

• fenőkő
• fenőszíj
• ken-fen
• kikent-kifent

 

Expressions

• feni a fogát

 

Etymology 2

Noun

fen (plural fenek)

2. fen (unit of currency in China, one-hundredth of a yuan)

Declension

Inflection (stem in -e-, front unrounded harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	fen	fenek
accusative	fent	feneket
dative	fennek	feneknek
instrumental	fennel	fenekkel
causal-final	fenért	fenekért
translative	fenné	fenekké
terminative	fenig	fenekig
essive-formal	fenként	fenekként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	fenben	fenekben
superessive	fenen	feneken
adessive	fennél	feneknél
illative	fenbe	fenekbe
sublative	fenre	fenekre
allative	fenhez	fenekhez
elative	fenből	fenekből
delative	fenről	fenekről
ablative	fentől	fenektől
non-attributive possessive - singular	fené	feneké
non-attributive possessive - plural	fenéi	fenekéi

Possessive forms of fen
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	fenem	fenjeim
2nd person sing.	fened	fenjeid
3rd person sing.	fenje	fenjei
1st person plural	fenünk	fenjeink
2nd person plural	fenetek	fenjeitek
3rd person plural	fenjük	fenjeik

Further reading

• (to whet): fen in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN

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Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse fen, from Proto-Germanic *fanją.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɛːn/
• Rhymes: -ɛːn

Noun

fen n (genitive singular fens, nominative plural fen)

1. fen, marsh, morass

Declension

declension of fen

n-s	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	fen	fenið	fen	fenin
accusative	fen	fenið	fen	fenin
dative	feni	feninu	fenum	fenunum
genitive	fens	fensins	fena	fenanna

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Istriot

Etymology

From Latin faenum.

Noun

fen

1. hay

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Lombard

Etymology

Akin to Italian fieno, from Latin fenum.

Noun

fen

1. hay

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Mandarin

Romanization

fen

1. Nonstandard spelling of fēn.
2. Nonstandard spelling of fén.
3. Nonstandard spelling of fěn.
4. Nonstandard spelling of fèn.

Usage notes

• English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

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Middle English

Alternative forms

• fenne, ven

Etymology

From Old English fenn; from Proto-Germanic *fanją. The "dung" sense is influenced by Old French fien.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɛn/

Noun

fen (plural fennes)

1. fen, bog, swamp
2. dirt, muddiness
3. dung, feces
4. (rare) rubbish, refuse
5. (rare) quagmire, lure

Declension

    Declension of fen

	Singular	Plural
nominative, accusative	fen	fennes
genitive	fennes	fenne, fennes
dative	fenne	fennen

Descendants

• English: fen
• Scots: fen
• Yola: ven

References

• “fen, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
• “fen, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

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Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *fanją.

Noun

fen n (genitive fens, plural fen)

1. bog, quagmire

   mýrar ok fen

   (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Declension

  Declension of fen (strong ja-stem)

neuter	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	fen	fenit	fen	fenin
accusative	fen	fenit	fen	fenin
dative	feni	feninu	fenjum	fenjunum
genitive	fens	fensins	fenja	fenjanna

References

• “fen”, in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowed from German Föhn.

Noun

fȇn m (Cyrillic spelling фе̑н)

1. hair dryer
2. (meteorology) foehn

Declension

Declension of fen

	singular	plural
nominative	fen	fenovi
genitive	fena	fenova
dative	fenu	fenovima
accusative	fen	fenove
vocative	fene	fenovi
locative	fenu	fenovima
instrumental	fenom	fenovima

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Swedish

Noun

fen

1. definite singular of fe.

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Turkish

Etymology

From Ottoman Turkish فن‎ (fen, “kind, variety; art, science”), from Arabic فَنّ‎ (fann).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɛn/

Noun

fen (definite accusative fenni, plural fenler)

1. science

Declension

Inflection
Nominative	fen
Definite accusative	fenni
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	fen	fenler
Definite accusative	fenni	fenleri
Dative	fenne	fenlere
Locative	fende	fenlerde
Ablative	fenden	fenlerden
Genitive	fennin	fenlerin

Synonyms

• ilim
• bilim

Related terms

• fennî (“scientific, technical”)
• fünun (Arabic plural)

References

• Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–), “fen”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
• Redhouse, James W. (1890), “فن”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon, Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 1397