- present participle of ken.
kenning
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of kenning
First recorded in 1880–85; from Old Norse: literally “teaching, doctrine, poetic periphrasis”; see origin at ken, -ing 1
Explanation
A kenning, in literature, is a word or phrase that is a metaphor for something simpler. Calling a ship a "sea-steed," for example, is a kenning. You're most likely to hear the term kenning in a literature class, especially if you happen to be studying Old Norse or Old English poetry. It's part of both literary traditions to use figurative language — often in the form of a compound word or a phrase — to represent a simple word. In Old Norse, a typical kenning is "sun of the houses" for "fire." The root is the Old Norse kenna, "know, recognize, or perceive."
Vocabulary lists containing kenning
Lesson 1
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Understanding Literary Forms: Poetry and the Epic & Analyze Literature
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Parts 1 & 2 Literary Terms (Unit 1)
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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.
Bell: And so say I: Though, kenning only Peter, I’m inclined To fancy Jim may be the better man.
From Krindlesyke by Gibson, Wilfrid Wilson
He was the first to recognize the significance of kenning, metaphor, and compound.
From The Translations of Beowulf A Critical Bibliography by Tinker, Chauncey Brewster
Ay—ay, thou is a cunning lad for kenning the hours of bargaining.
From International Short Stories English by Various
You’ll scorn me, as I often scorn myself: But, kenning the worst, in my heart of hearts, I hanker ...
From Krindlesyke by Gibson, Wilfrid Wilson
Let her and him gang to the Cuttle Well, as Aaron and me went, kenning no guile and thinking none, and with their arms round one another's waists.
From Sentimental Tommy The Story of His Boyhood by Barrie, J. M. (James Matthew)
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.
