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pen

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: Appendix:Variations of "pen"
Languages (23)
Translingual • English
Angloromani • Dalmatian • Danish • Dutch • Haitian Creole • Indonesian • Japanese • Mandarin • Mapudungun • Middle English • Mindiri • Mokilese • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old Cornish • Portuguese • Rade • Romani • Tok Pisin • Volapük • Welsh
Page categories

Translingual

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Etymology

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Clipping of English Penesak.

Symbol

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pen

  1. (international standards, obsolete) Former ISO 639-3 language code for Penesak.

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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    English Wikipedia has an article on:
    Wikipedia

    From Middle English pen, penne (“enclosure for animals”), from Old English penn (“enclosure, fold, pen”), from Proto-Germanic *pennō, *pannijō (“pin, bolt, nail, tack”), from Proto-Indo-European *bend- (“pointed peg, nail, edge”). Related to pin.

    Sense “prison” originally figurative extension to “enclosure for persons” (1845), later influenced by penitentiary (“prison”), being analyzed as an abbreviation (1884).[1]

    Noun

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    pen (plural pens)

    2. An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.
      There are two steers in the third pen.
    3. (slang) A penitentiary, i.e. a state or federal prison for convicted felons.
      They caught him with a stolen horse, and he wound up in the pen again.
    5. (baseball) The bullpen.
      Two righties are up in the pen.
    Derived terms
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    Translations
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    Etymology 2

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      From Middle English pennen, from Old English *pennian (“to close, lock, bolt”, attested in onpennian (“to open”)), derived from penn (see above). Akin to Low German pennen (“to secure a door with a bolt”).

      Verb

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      pen (third-person singular simple present pens, present participle penning, simple past and past participle penned or pent)

      1. (transitive) To enclose in a pen.
        • 1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
          Watching where shepherds pen their flocks at eve.
      Derived terms
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      Translations
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      Etymology 3

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        A ballpoint pen, showing assembly.

        From Middle English penne, from Anglo-Norman penne, from Old French penne, from Latin penna (“feather”), from Proto-Indo-European *péth₂r̥ ~ pth₂én- (“feather, wing”), from *peth₂- (“to rush, fly”) (from which petition). Proto-Indo-European base also root of *petra-, from which Ancient Greek πτερόν (pterón, “wing”) (whence pterodactyl), Sanskrit पत्रम् (patram, “wing, feather”), Old Church Slavonic перо (pero, “pen”), Old Norse fjǫðr, Old English feþer, feðer (Modern English feather);[1] note the /p/ → /f/ Germanic sound change.

        Doublet of panne, penna, and pinna. See feather and πέτομαι (pétomai) for more.

        Noun

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        English Wikipedia has an article on:
        Wikipedia

        pen (plural pens)

        2. A tool, originally made from a feather but now usually a small tubular instrument, containing ink used to write or make marks.
          Hyponyms: ballpoint pen, ballpoint (ellipsis), ball pen, ballpen, biro (Commonwealth); dip pen, nib pen, fountain pen, stylographic pen; gel pen; autopen
          He took notes with a pen.
          Please use a pen, not a pencil, when filling out this form. Use black or blue ink only.
        4. (figurative) A writer, or their style.
          He has a sharp pen.
          • 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […], London: […] Iohn Williams […], →OCLC, (please specify |book=I to XI):
            those learned pens
        6. (colloquial) Marks of ink left by a pen.
          He's unhappy because he got pen on his new shirt.
        7. A light pen.
        9. (zoology) The internal cartilage skeleton of a squid, shaped like a pen.
          • 2017, Danna Staaf, Squid Empire, ForeEdge, →ISBN, page 117:
            A pen is nothing more complex than a decalcified shell, so one mutation of the genes that controlled calcification could be all it took.
        11. (now rare, poetic, dialectal) A feather, especially one of the flight feathers of a bird, angel etc.
        13. (poetic) A wing.
          • 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the page number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
            but feather'd soon and fledge
            They summed their pens, and soaring the air sublime
        15. A syringe-like device for injecting a dose of medication such as insulin or epinephrine. (See Injector pen.)
          • 2023 August 29, Geri Krotow, A Wasp in the Woods, Tule Publishing, →ISBN:
            "I'm sure she had more than one EpiPen […] " "But she didn't have one when she got stung or she'd have used it." By all appearances, Mariah died in the woods, […] If she managed to grab the pen found under her leg from her bag or pocket, she never discharged it. But Crystal doesn't have these details. "Doesn't it make sense that she kept an extra pen in her cupboard, and one in her bag? The extra pen fell out, is all."
        17. Ellipsis of vapor pen (“electronic cigarette”).
          a dab pen; a wax pen
        Descendants
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        • → Korean: 펜 (pen)
        • → Maori: pene
        Derived terms
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        Translations
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        Verb

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        pen (third-person singular simple present pens, present participle penning, simple past and past participle penned)

        1. (transitive) To write (an article, a book, etc.).
          • 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Nonuel:
            Prying open the crate, you discover a carefully wrapped, handwritten copy of one of Matriarch Dilinaga's treatises. It is unlikely she penned it herself, but the flowing brushwork and intricate watercolor illustrations clearly show the hand of a master scribe.
          • 2021 February 9, Christina Newland, “Is Tom Hanks part of a dying breed of genuine movie stars?”, in BBC‎[3]:
            His two most recent films are last year's Greyhound, a Hanks-penned World War Two thriller in which he plays a naval commander, and now News of the World, a Western set in the years immediately following the close of the US Civil War, directed by Paul Greengrass, which is premiering around the world on Netflix tomorrow.
          • 2021 December 29, Conrad Landin, “Glasgow Subway: a city institution”, in RAIL, number 947, page 45:
            It was in this era, too, that author and Scotland the Brave songwriter Cliff Hanley penned The Glasgow Underground, a tongue-in-cheek love letter to the Subway in song.
        Derived terms
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        Translations
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        Etymology 4

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        Origin uncertain. Compare hen.

        Noun

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        pen (plural pens)

        1. A female swan.
        Synonyms
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        Translations
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        Etymology 5

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        Clipping of penalty.

        Noun

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        pen (plural pens)

        1. (soccer, slang) Penalty.
          England won 3-1 on pens.

        Etymology 6

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        Clipping of penetration.

        Noun

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        pen (plural pens)

        1. (computing, informal) Penetration.
        Derived terms
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        Etymology 7

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        By incorrect analogy with man → men.

        Noun

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        pen (uncountable)

        2. (humorous) plural of pan

        References

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        1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Douglas Harper (2001–2025), “pen”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

        See also

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        Anagrams

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        Angloromani

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        Alternative forms

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        Etymology

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        Inherited from Romani phen.

        Pronunciation

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        • IPA(key): [ˈpʰen], [ˈpen], [pʰɛn]

        Noun

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        pen

        1. sister
          Synonyms: minnipen, rakla
          Sa see pal te pen? ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)

        Derived terms

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        References

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        • “pen”, in Angloromani Dictionary‎[4], The Manchester Romani Project, 2004-2006, page 132

        Dalmatian

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        Alternative forms

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        Etymology

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        From Latin pānis, pānem.

        Noun

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        pen m

        1. (Ragusan) bread

        Danish

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        Etymology 1

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        From late Old Norse penni, from Latin penna (“feather”).

        Pronunciation

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        • IPA(key): /pɛnˀ/, [pʰɛnˀ]

        Noun

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        pen c (singular definite pennen, plural indefinite penne)

        1. pen
        2. quill
        3. pane, peen
        Declension
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        Declension of pen
        common
        gender         		singular plural
        indefinite definite indefinite definite
        nominative pen pennen penne pennene
        genitive pens pennens pennes pennenes

        Etymology 2

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        Adjective

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        pen (neuter pent, plural and definite singular attributive pene, comparative penere, superlative (predicative) penest, superlative (attributive) peneste)

        1. obsolete spelling of pæn

        Dutch

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        Etymology

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        From Middle Dutch penne, ultimately from Latin penna. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

        Pronunciation

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        Noun

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        pen f (plural pennen, diminutive pennetje n)

        1. a long feather of a bird
        2. pen (writing utensil)
        3. pin
          Synonym: pin

        Derived terms

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        Descendants

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        Anagrams

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        Haitian Creole

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        Haitian Creole Wikipedia has an article on:
        Wikipedia ht

        Pronunciation

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        Etymology 1

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        From French pain (“bread”).

        Noun

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        pen

        1. bread
        Derived terms
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        Etymology 2

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        From French pin.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. A pine tree, especially the Hispaniola pine.

        References

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        • Targète, Jean; Urciolo, Raphael (1993), Haitian Creole-English Dictionary‎[5], Dunwoody Press, →ISBN

        Indonesian

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        Pronunciation

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        Etymology 1

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        From Dutch pen, from Latin penna (“feather, pen”). Doublet of pena.

        Noun

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        pèn (plural pen-pen)

        1. (nonstandard) alternative form of pena (“pen”)
        2. (medicine) pin, metal used to fasten or as a bearing

        Etymology 2

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        Verb

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        pen

        1. (slang) syncopic form of pengen

        Further reading

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        Japanese

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        Romanization

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        pen

        1. Rōmaji transcription of ペン

        Mandarin

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        Romanization

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        pen

        1. nonstandard spelling of pēn
        2. nonstandard spelling of pén
        3. nonstandard spelling of pěn
        4. nonstandard spelling of pèn

        Usage notes

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        • Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

        Mapudungun

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        Verb

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        pen (Raguileo spelling)

        1. to see
          Synonym: petun

        Middle English

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        Etymology 1

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        Noun

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        pen

        2. alternative form of penne

        Etymology 2

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        From Old English penn, from Proto-Germanic *pennō, perhaps from the root of pinn (“peg, pin”).

        Alternative forms

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        Pronunciation

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        Noun

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        pen

        2. An enclosed structure for securing animals.
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        Descendants
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        References
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        Mindiri

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        Noun

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        pen

        1. woman

        Further reading

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        • Malcolm Ross, Proto Oceanic and the Austronesian Languages of Western Melanesia, Pacific Linguistics, series C-98 (1988)

        Mokilese

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        Noun

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        pen

        1. coconut, especially one that coconut milk can be drunk from

        Inflection

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        Forms of pen
        singular plural
        demonstrative forms
        1st person
        (near speaker)         		penne penkai
        2nd person
        (near hearer)         		pennen penken
        3rd person
        (near neither speaker nor hearer)         		penno pennok
        article forms
        indefinite pennoaw penpwi
        definite penwa

        Norwegian Bokmål

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        Etymology

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        Possibly from French.

        Adjective

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        pen (neuter singular pent, definite singular and plural pene, comparative penere, indefinite superlative penest, definite superlative peneste)

        1. nice
          pent vær ― nice weather
        2. neat
        3. beautiful, pretty
        4. handsome, good-looking

        References

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        Norwegian Nynorsk

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        Etymology

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        Possibly from French.

        Adjective

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        pen (neuter singular pent, definite singular and plural pene, comparative penare, indefinite superlative penast, definite superlative penaste)

        1. nice
          pent vêr ― nice weather
        2. neat
        3. beautiful, pretty
        4. handsome, good-looking

        References

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        Old Cornish

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        Etymology

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        From Proto-Celtic *kʷennom.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. head

        Portuguese

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        Etymology

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        Pseudo-anglicism, derived from pen.

        Pronunciation

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        • Rhymes: -ɛn
        • Hyphenation: pen

        Noun

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        pen f (plural pens)

        1. (Portugal, computer hardware) pen drive, flash drive (small portable device that connects to a computer via a USB port and is used to store and/or transfer data)
          Synonyms: chave de memória, pen-drive
          Comprei uma pen de 16 GB. ― I bought a 16 GB flash drive.

        Further reading

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        Rade

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        Etymology

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        Borrowed from French pince.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. pincers

        Romani

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        Pronoun

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        pen

        1. themselves (third-person plural reflexive pronoun)

        See also

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        Romani personal pronouns
        number person nominative accusative dative locative ablative instrumental possessive
        singular first me man manqe manθe manθar mança miro, -i, -e
        second tu tut tuqe tuθe tuθar tuça tiro, -i, -e
        reflexive third — pes pesqe pesθe pesθar peça pesqero, -i, -e
        third m ov les lesqe lesθe lesθar leça lesqero, -i, -e
        f oj la laqe laθe laθar laça laqero, -i, -e
        plural first amen amenqe amenθe amenθar amença amaro, -i, -e
        second tumen tumenqe tumenθe tumenθar tumença tumaro, -i, -e
        reflexive third — pen penqe penθe penθar pença penqero, -i, -e
        third on len lenqe lenθe lenθar lença lenqero, -i, -e
        Kalderash Romani personal pronouns
        number person nominative accusative (long and short forms) dative locative ablative instrumental possessive
        singular first me man, ma mánge mánde mándar mánsa múrro, -i, -e
        second tu tut, tu túke túte tútar túsa tíro, -i, -e
        reflexive third — pês, pe pêske pêste pêstar pêsa pêsko, -i, -e
        third m wo lês, le lêske lêste lêstar lêsa lêsko, -i, -e
        f woi la, la láke láte látar lása láko, -i, -e
        plural first ame amên, ame amênge amênde amêndar amênsa amáro, -i, -e
        second tume tumên, tume tumênge tumênde tumêndar tumênsa tumáro, -i, -e
        reflexive third — pên, pe pênge pênde pêndar pênsa pêngo, -i, -e
        third won lên, le lênge lênde lêndar lênsa lêngo, -i, -e

        Tok Pisin

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        Etymology 1

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        From English paint.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. paint

        Etymology 2

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        From English pen.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. pen

        Etymology 3

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        From English pain.

        Noun

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        pen

        1. pain
          • 1989, Buk Baibel long Tok Pisin, Port Moresby: Bible Society of Papua New Guinea, Jenesis 3:16:
            Na God i tokim meri olsem, “Bai mi givim yu bikpela hevi long taim yu gat bel. Na bai yu gat bikpela pen long taim yu karim pikinini. Tasol bai yu gat bikpela laik yet long man bilong yu, na bai em i bosim yu.”
            →New International Version translation

        Volapük

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        Noun

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        pen (nominative plural pens)

        1. pen

        Declension

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        Declension of pen
        singular plural
        nominative pen pens
        genitive pena penas
        dative pene penes
        accusative peni penis
        vocative 1 o pen! o pens!
        predicative 2 penu penus

        1 status as a case is disputed
        2 in later, non-classical Volapük only

        Welsh

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        Etymology

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          From Middle Welsh and Old Welsh penn, from Proto-Brythonic *penn, from Proto-Celtic *kʷennom.

          Pronunciation

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          Noun

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          pen m (plural pennau)

          1. (anatomy) head
          2. chief
            Synonym: prif
          3. top, apex
            Synonym: brig
          4. end, extremity
            Synonyms: blaen, ffin

          Derived terms

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          Adjective

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          pen (feminine singular pen, plural pen, equative penned, comparative pennach, superlative pennaf)

          1. head, chief
            Synonym: prif
          2. supreme, principal
            Synonyms: pennol, blaenol

          Usage notes

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          Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru documents examples of equative (cyn bynned) and comparative (pennach) degrees of comparison for the adjectival use of this noun.[1] In present day however, only the superlative degree pennaf is in use. For other nouns with a derived superlative but lacking other degrees of comparison, see blaen (“front”), diwedd (“end, termination”) and ôl (“back”).[2] [3]

          Mutation

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          Mutated forms of pen
          radical soft nasal aspirate
          pen ben mhen phen

          Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
          All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

          References

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          1. ^ R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “pen”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
          2. ^ Bruce Griffiths; Dafydd Glyn Jones (1995), “Morffoleg y Gymraeg”, in Geiriadur yr Academi‎[1], archived from the original on 21 August 2025, Comparative forms formed from nouns
          3. ^ Peter Wyn Thomas (1996), “4. Yr Ymadrodd Enwol”, in Gramadeg y Gymraeg‎[2] (in Welsh), Cardiff: University of Wales Press, retrieved 21 August 2025, pages 228-229

          Further reading

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          • D. G. Lewis, N. Lewis, editors (2005–present), “pen”, in Gweiadur: the Welsh–English Dictionary, Gwerin
          Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=pen&oldid=88517281"