pen
An enclosure used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattleAn enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.
Recorded US: Dvortygirl, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Meaning
14 sensesAn enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.
There are two steers in the third pen.
Pferch, Zwinger
заго́нzagón, коша́раkošára
загі́нzahín
(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.
The bullpen.
Two righties are up in the pen.
A tool, originally made from a feather but now usually a small tubular instrument, containing ink used to write or make marks.
He took notes with a pen.
another novel from the pen of everybody's fave thriller writer.
Kugelschreiber, Stift, Federhalter
ру́чкаrúčka, автору́чкаavtorúčka, перо́peró
ру́чкаrúčka, перо́peró
(figuratively)A writer, or their style.
He has a sharp pen.
Schreiber, Schreibstil, Feder
перо́peró
(colloquial)Marks of ink left by a pen.
He's unhappy because he got pen on his new shirt.
A light pen.
The internal cartilage skeleton of a squid, shaped like a pen.
(poetic)A wing.
A syringe-like device for injecting a dose of medication such as insulin or epinephrine. (See Injector pen.)
A female swan.
Schwanenweibchen, weiblicher Schwan, Schwänin
лебёдкаlebjódka, лебёдушкаlebjóduška
female swan
(slang)Penalty.
England won 3-1 on pens.
Examples
943 sentencesYour pen is better than mine.
Твоя ручка краща, ніж моя. — deniko
ruТвоя ручка лучше моей. — afyodor
deDein Stift ist besser als meiner. — Fingerhut
Don't forget to bring a pen.
Не забудь принести ручку. — deniko
ruНе забудь принести ручку. — marafon
deVergiss nicht, einen Stift mitzubringen! — Pfirsichbaeumchen
Tom handed the pen to Mary.
Том передав ручку Мері. — deniko
ruТом подал Мэри ручку. — sharptoothed
Don't forget to return my pen.
Не забудь повернути мені ручку. — older
ruНе забудь вернуть мою ручку. — odexed
I gave Tom a nice pen.
Я дав Тому гарну ручку. — deniko
ruЯ подарил Тому красивую ручку. — marafon
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 2
By meaning 3
By meaning 4
Origin
From Middle English pen, penne (“enclosure for animals”), from Old English penn (“enclosurFrom 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.
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”, whence petition), root of *petra-, whence Ancient Greek πτερόν (pterón, “wing”, whence pterodactyl), and also of Sanskrit पत्रम् (patram, “wing, feather”), Old Church Slavonic перо (pero, “pen”), Old Norse fjǫðr (“feather”), Old English feþer, feðer (Modern English feather); note the /p/ → /f/ Germanic sound change.
Origin uncertain. Compare hen.
Clipping of penalty.
Clipping of penetration.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: pensSynonyms
5 synonyms- a correctional institution for those convicted of major crimes:penitentiary
- a portable enclosure in which babies may be left to play:playpen
Word family
115 related wordsCollocations
12 patterns- ballpoint pen
- have a pen
- fountain pen
- pen in his
- notebook and pen
- borrow a pen
- borrow your pen
- holding a pen
- this pen is
- a pen in
- pen pal
- how many pens
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.