e'en

¹ American

[een] / in /

noun

Chiefly Literary.

evening.

e'en ² American

[een] / in /

adverb

Chiefly Literary.

contraction of even.

e'en British

/ iːn /

adverb

a contraction of even 2 evening

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of e'en

Contraction of even ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

I must from thee away; There are laws which e'en spirits are bound to obey!

From Project Gutenberg

I do not intend ever to have him; but if the poor creature is resolved to sigh at my feet, I must e'en let him.

From Project Gutenberg

And e'en the merry mavis Will rank as rara avis— The sparrow, sole of all that sailed with Noah, Will learn the casual pot-shot to withstand!

From Project Gutenberg

"But I would love to go to sea, and become famous like Admiral Blake, e'en though he were a Roundhead!"

From Project Gutenberg

Ah, no! e'en in dying he would not deceive; And he promised, if spirit such power could receive, And he fell in his holy chivalry.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023