pen

1 of 8

verb (1)

ˈpen 

penned; penning

transitive verb

: to shut in or as if in a pen

The cattle were penned behind a wooden fence.

pen

2 of 8

noun (1)

1

a

: a small enclosure for animals

b

: the animals in a pen

a pen of sheep

2

: a small place of confinement or storage

3

: a protected dock or slip for a submarine

4

: bullpen sense 2

pen

3 of 8

noun (2)

1

: an implement for writing or drawing with ink or a similar fluid: such as

a

: quill

b

: pen point

c

: a penholder containing a pen point

d

: fountain pen

e

: ballpoint pen

2

a

: a writing instrument regarded as a means of expression

enlisted the pens of the best writers

—F. H. Chase

b

: writer

3

: the internal horny feather-shaped shell of a squid

4

: stylus sense d

5

: a medical device for injecting drugs that resembles a fountain pen, contains a cartridge prefilled with usually several doses of medication, and when designed for multiple injections has a needle that is replaced after each use

insulin pens

People accidentally exposed to a food culprit can use the pen to inject themselves with a dose of epinephrine—also known as adrenaline—to avoid a severe allergic reaction.

—Walecia Konrad

pen

4 of 8

verb (2)

penned; penning

transitive verb

: write, indite

pen a letter

pen

5 of 8

noun (3)

: a female swan

pen

6 of 8

noun (4)

: penitentiary

pen

7 of 8

abbreviation (1)

peninsula

PEN

8 of 8

abbreviation (2)

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

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• box (in)
• cage
• closet
• coop (up)
• corral
• encage
• encase
• enclose
• inclose
• envelop
• fence (in)
• hedge
• hem (in)
• house
• immure
• include
• mew (up)
• wall (in)

Noun (1)

• cage
• coop
• corral
• hutch
• pound

Noun (2)

• author
• litterateur
• littérateur
• penman
• scribe
• scrivener
• writer

Verb (2)

• author
• scratch (out)
• scribble
• write

Noun (4)

• bastille
• big house [slang]
• bridewell
• brig
• calaboose
• can
• clink [slang]
• cooler
• coop
• guardroom
• hock
• hold
• hoosegow
• jail
• jailhouse
• joint [slang]
• jug
• lockup
• nick [British slang]
• penitentiary
• pokey [slang]
• prison
• quod [British slang]
• slam
• slammer
• stir [slang]
• stockade
• tolbooth [Scottish]

Examples of pen in a Sentence

Verb (1)

remember to pen up the dogs when visitors come over

Noun (1)

a goat pen

Noun (2)

Alexander Hamilton is reckoned to be the pseudonymous pen behind two thirds of the Federalist Papers

Verb (2)

though relatively unknown at the time of his death, the composer had penned some of the most memorable show tunes of his era

Noun (4)

earned six years in a federal pen

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Sarah also penned an online petition calling for a murder trial against her father, which gained nearly 300,000 signatures and eventually landed the Turney family in court. —Sean Neumann, People.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Earlier this year in April, more than 200 musicians, composers, songwriters and other artists signed an open letter penned by the Artists Rights Alliance demanding the responsible use of AI in music. —Karen K. Ho, ARTnews.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Noun

Saying Guns Should Be Fired at Her Plans include reintroducing ceramic mugs for in-store customers and Sharpie pens for baristas to personalize orders. —Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 1 Nov. 2024

Its fetching design was by the hugely prolific Giovanni Michelotti, whose pen touched nearly every great Italian marque. —Robert Ross, Robb Report, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English pennen, from Old English -pennian

Noun (1)

Middle English, perhaps from pennen

Noun (2)

Middle English penne, from Anglo-French, feather, pen, from Latin penna, pinna feather; akin to Greek pteron wing — more at feather

Noun (3)

origin unknown

First Known Use

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

circa 1550, in the meaning defined above

Noun (4)

1881, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing pen

• ballpoint pen
• bull pen
• felt-tip pen
• fountain pen
• light pen
• pen friend
• pen in
• pen name
• pen pal
• pen point
• pen pusher
• pen up
• poison-pen
• poison-pen letter
• put pen to paper
• put/set pen to paper
• sea pen
• the pen
• with a (single) stroke of a/the/his/her pen

Kids Definition

pen

1 of 5 noun

ˈpen 

1

: a small enclosure for animals

2

: a small place of confinement or storage

pen

2 of 5 verb

penned; penning

: to shut in a pen

pen

3 of 5 noun

: an instrument for writing or drawing with ink

pen

4 of 5 verb

penned; penning

: to write especially with a pen

pen

5 of 5 noun

slang

: penitentiary

Etymology

Noun

Middle English

Noun

Middle English penne "a writing instrument made from a bird's feather," from early French penne "a bird's feather, pen," from Latin penna, pinna "feather"

Noun

a shortened form of penitentiary

Word Origin

The words pen and pencil look very much alike, and the writing instruments themselves have much in common. But these two words are not at all related. Pen can be traced back to the Latin word penna or pinna, meaning "feather." The early pens were made of long feathers trimmed to a point to hold ink. In time, pens came to be made with metal points and later with rolling balls instead of points. For this reason we no longer associate the word pen with feathers. Pencil can be traced to the Latin word penicillus, which meant "little tail" or "brush." (It also gave us our word penicillin.) The first pencils were artists' brushes that had fine hairs drawn to a point, like the tail of a tiny animal. From these first pencils, used for painting fine lines, the word came to be used for other instruments used to draw marks. Some pencils were sticks of charcoal. Others were sticks of slate or lead. Still others were sticks of colored material like crayons. In time, we began using our modern wood and graphite pencils, which are not at all like the original "little tails."

Medical Definition

pen

noun

ˈpen 

: a medical device for injecting drugs that resembles a fountain pen, contains a cartridge prefilled with usually several doses of medication, and when designed for multiple injections has a needle that is replaced after each use

Note: Medical pens are either disposable or reusable depending on whether the cartridge can be removed and replaced with a new prefilled one.

In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas can no longer produce insulin and patients must give themselves multiple daily injections with insulin pens or syringes …

—The Republican (Springfield, Massachusetts)

Illinois law allows schools to keep epinephrine pens around, and nurses or trained staff are allowed to use them in an emergency.

—Mike Riopell, The Chicago Daily Herald