glen
noun
a small, narrow, secluded valley.
glen
1 American
[glen]
/ glɛn /
noun
Glen
2
American
[glen]
/ glɛn /
noun
glen
British
/ ɡlɛn /
noun
Other Word Forms
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.
Vocabulary lists containing glen
St. Patrick's Day Vocabulary: Words With Irish and Gaelic Roots
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"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
First-Name Basis: Words That Are Also Names
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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.
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
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
Indeed, consumers may want their vehicles not only to look good in, say, a wooded glen, but also to project the very idea that they care about wooded glens.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 7, 2023
In a leafy glen in a very small, beautiful moment, the trees watched too.
From Salon • Oct. 8, 2022
It has roses on it and maidens cavorting in the glen.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
