keen

¹ American  

[keen] / kin /

adjective

keener, keenest

1. finely sharpened, as an edge; so shaped as to cut or pierce substances readily.

   a keen razor.

   Antonyms:

   dull

2. sharp, piercing, or biting.

   a keen wind;

   keen satire.

   Synonyms:

   caustic, bitter, cutting

3. characterized by strength and distinctness of perception; extremely sensitive or responsive.

   keen eyes;

   keen ears.

   Synonyms:

   acute, penetrating, piercing

4. having or showing great mental penetration or acumen.

   keen reasoning;

   a keen mind.

   Synonyms:

   clever, shrewd, sagacious, astute, acute, discerning

   Antonyms:

   obtuse, dull

5. animated by or showing strong feeling or desire.

   keen competition.

6. intense, as feeling or desire.

   keen ambition;

   keen jealousy.

7. eager; interested; enthusiastic; (often followed by about, on, etc., or an infinitive).

   She is really keen on going swimming.

   Synonyms:

   fervid, earnest

8. Older Slang. great; wonderful; marvelous.

---

keen ² American  

[keen] / kin /

noun

1. a wailing lament for the dead.

---

verb (used without object)

1. to wail in lamentation for the dead.

verb (used with object)

1. to mourn for by or with such keening or wailing.

   keening his mother while kneeling at her grave.

keen ¹ British  

/ kiːn /

adjective

1. eager or enthusiastic

2. fond (of); devoted (to)

   keen on a girl

   keen on golf

3. intellectually acute

   a keen wit

4. (of sight, smell, hearing, etc) capable of recognizing fine distinctions

5. having a sharp cutting edge or point

6. extremely cold and penetrating

   a keen wind

7. intense or strong

   a keen desire

8. extremely low so as to be competitive

   keen prices

9. slang very good

---

keen ² British  

/ kiːn /

verb

1. to lament the dead

---

noun

1. a dirge or lament for the dead

Usage

What does keen mean? Keen commonly means eager, interested, or enthusiastic. This sense of the word is often followed by about or on and the particular interest, as in He’s very keen on music. More generally, keen means sharp, intense, or strong. It can be used to mean sharp in a literal way, as in a keen blade. It can also be used in several figurative ways. A keen sense of smell is one that’s very strong and perceptive. A keen intellect is one that’s sharp in the sense of being mentally strong. A keen desire is an intense one. A keen satire and a keen wind are both piercing and biting—they both sting.The word keen can also be used as a slang term meaning wonderful or splendid, and this is how it’s used in the phrase peachy keen, which is used as an informal and playful way to describe something as excellent or wonderful.Example: He showed keen jealousy over my keen knife.

Related Words

See sharp. See avid.

Other Word Forms

• keener noun
• keenly adverb
• keenness noun

Etymology

Origin of keen¹

First recorded before 900; 1930–35 keen ¹ for def. 8; Middle English kene, Old English cēne; cognate with German kühn, Old High German chuoni “bold,” Old Norse kœnn “wise, skillful”

Origin of keen²

First recorded in 1780–90 for the verb; from Irish caoin-, stem of caoinim “(I) lament”; noun derivative of the verb

Example Sentences

They were greeted by companies that were keen to offer better salaries to attract talent, helped by the rise in remote workers and a surge in hiring.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

But then love and marriage reared its head and Burden’s story took a dark turn, which she chronicles with a keen forensic eye in her buzzy new memoir, “Strangers.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026

The game will provide fringe players with a chance to impress their bosses, Craig Bellamy and Michael O'Neill, who are understandably keen to stress the value of this encounter.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

The Belgian museum, which holds what is widely regarded as the world’s leading collection of Central African art and objects, isn’t so keen.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026

“I’ve never been to China myself—born and raised here in California—but I’d love to go someday, and in the meantime I’m keen to collect pieces from there. So many centuries of history and culture!”

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

Related Words

• anxious
• ardent
• avid
• eager
• fervent
• fierce
• impatient
• intense