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• ben
  ben

  noun

  the inner or back room of a two-room cottage, especially when used as a combined parlor and bedroom.
• Ben
  Ben

  noun

  a first name, form of Benjamin.

ben

¹ American  

[ben] / bɛn /

noun

1. the inner or back room of a two-room cottage, especially when used as a combined parlor and bedroom.

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adverb

1. within; inside.

adjective

1. inside; inner.

ben ² American  

[ben] / bɛn /

noun

1. the seed of a tropical tree, Moringa pterygosperma, that yields an oil ben oil used in manufacturing cosmetics and lubricating delicate machinery.

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ben ³ American  

[ben] / bɛn /

noun

Scot., Irish.

1. a mountain peak; high hill.

   Ben Nevis.

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ben ⁴ American  

[ben] / bɛn /

Also Ben

1. son of (used especially in Hebrew and Arabic names).

   Moses ben Maimon.

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Ben ⁵ American  

[ben] / bɛn /

noun

1. a first name, form of Benjamin.

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ben ¹ British  

/ bɛn /

noun

1. an inner room in a house or cottage

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preposition

1. in; within; inside; into the inner part (of a house)

adjective

1. inner

ben ² British  

/ bɛn /

noun

1. any of several Asiatic trees of the genus Moringa , esp M. oleifera of Arabia and India, whose seeds yield oil of ben , used in manufacturing perfumes and cosmetics, lubricating delicate machinery, etc: family Moringaceae

2. the seed of such a tree

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ben ³ British  

/ bɛn /

noun

1. a mountain peak (esp in place names)

   Ben Lomond

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Etymology

Origin of ben¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English (Scots); as adverb, an unexplained variant of late Middle English bin, Middle English binne, Old English binnan “within” (cognate with Old Frisian binna, Middle Dutch, German binnen ), equivalent to bi- “near, around” + innan “within”; see origin at be-, in

Origin of ben²

First recorded in 1550–60; from Arabic bān, the name of the tree

Origin of ben³

First recorded in 1780–90; from Scots Gaelic, Irish beann “peak”

Origin of ben⁴

From Hebrew bēn, Arabic bin “son”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ben Ben

His classmates “were certainly never known as Mordecai ben Aharon ha Levi—which is what my own name is in Hebrew.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

The new venture is "exciting" and "I feel like they're making noma more accessible," Stephen Velasco, an American who has ben living in Copenhagen for 32 years, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2025

The women call each other ben or sister in Gujarati.

From BBC ● Jan. 2, 2025

Moussi leads the Free Constitutional Party and is a supporter of late president Zine El Abidine ben Ali who was toppled by mass protests in 2011.

From Reuters ● Oct. 3, 2023

Twas he had driven them forth at first, without his killing e’er a one of them, and he himself was ben the castle at the very time.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

"Ben has extraordinary talent, power and character," Ferrero said.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

Among them was Kamel Ben Mbarek, 42, who said he had worked as a driver for the group's Islamic police in Raqqa, in northern Syria.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

Sens. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland both suffered strokes in 2022 and subsequently recovered.

From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2026

The conditions then were shocking, said Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley, who worked across Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia under the U.S.-funded Cooperative Threat Reduction Program during the early 2000s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Ben rolls the pages until they’re a tube, and then points it at me.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

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