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• glen
  glen

  noun

  a small, narrow, secluded valley.
• Glen
  Glen

  noun

  a male or female given name.

glen

¹ American  

[glen] / glɛn /

noun

• glens
  plural

1. a small, narrow, secluded valley.

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Glen ² American  

[glen] / glɛn /

noun

1. a male or female given name.

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glen British  

/ ɡlɛn /

noun

1. a narrow and deep mountain valley, esp in Scotland or Ireland

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• glenlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• glens
  plural

Etymology

Origin of glen

1480–90; < Irish, Scots Gaelic gleann; cognate with Welsh glynn

Explanation

A glen is a narrow valley deep in the mountains. Glens often form streams. The top of a mountain is the peak, and the lower parts are valleys. A glen is a valley that's narrow and secluded—it’s deep in the mountains. A glen could form a stream, or it could be lush and green. If you are on top of a mountain looking down, you may see several glens.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

glen Glen glens

But instead of disappearing beneath the Atlantic waves – the Titanic is depicted sinking in a desert, a glen, and other non-maritime landscapes.

From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2025

Rosie was pulled up to a stretcher, from where she could be carried down the glen to an ambulance.

From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2024

Each non-Pee-wee appearance required the audience to recalibrate our expectations and remove Reubens from the glen plaid suits and pomade-slicked hairdo for which we came to know him.

From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2023

In a leafy glen in a very small, beautiful moment, the trees watched too.

From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2022

The glen and sky spun round: the hills heaved!

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Last month marked a grim milestone: the combined volume of both reservoirs hit their lowest level since 1957, when Glen Canyon Dam was still under construction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

When evacuation warnings started rolling in on Monday, Morris, who manages Glen Oaks Big Sur, spent the day explaining the situation to guests at the property and those who had reservations in the coming days.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Booking is essential to join the team at Glen Tanar for the rare astronomical event.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Gore Glen was the site of Scotland's first industrial-scale gunpowder mill, which was established in 1794.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

Glen was in the game and he picked off a pass that was headed for their center.

From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers

The annual Manx Wildlife Week aims to encourage people to connect with the island's countryside, glens, hills and sea, as well as the creatures and plants that inhabit them.

From BBC ● Apr. 25, 2026

There will likely be no vistas of forest canopy, no shaded glens with water cascading through a tapestry of conifers, pine sap spicing the morning air.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 28, 2025

Although most of the park fills up daily with birthday parties, off-leash dogs, and brass bands, it’s also home to a network of shady glens, murmuring creeks, and still ponds.

From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2023

"Temperatures could get down to -10°C in sheltered glens, or across high ground areas of Scotland where there is lying snow," the Met Office said.

From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2023

A short way beyond the way-meeting, after another steep incline, a flying bridge of stone leapt over the chasm and bore the road across into the tumbled slopes and glens of the Morgai.

From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien