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• pen
  pen

  noun

  any of various instruments for writing or drawing with ink or a similar substance.
• pen-
  pen-

  variant of pene- before a vowel.
• Pen.
  Pen.

  abbreviation

  peninsula.
• P.E.N.
  P.E.N.

  abbreviation

  International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists.
• PEN
  PEN

  acronym

  International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists

pen

¹ American  

[pen] / pɛn /

noun

1. any of various instruments for writing or drawing with ink or a similar substance.

2. a detachable metal penpoint, filled by dipping or with a quill; nib.

3. such a penpoint with its penholder.

4. fountain pen.

5. ballpoint pen.

6. the pen as the instrument of writing or authorship.

   The pen is mightier than the sword.

7. a person's style or quality of writing.

   He writes with a witty, incisive pen.

8. a writer.

   I leave this story to abler pens.

9. the profession of writing.

   a master of the pen.

10. a pen-shaped device having a cartridge filled with a drug or medication.

    an insulin pen with disposable needles.

11. Computers. stylus.

12. Ornithology.

    1. a quill.

    2. a pinfeather.

13. something resembling or suggesting a feather or quill.

14. Zoology. an internal, corneous or chitinous, feather-shaped structure in certain cephalopods, as the squid.

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verb (used with object)

penned, penning

1. to write with or as with a pen; put down in writing.

   to pen an essay.

2. to draw with or as with a pen.

   to pen a sketch.

pen ² American  

[pen] / pɛn /

noun

1. a small enclosure for domestic animals.

2. animals so enclosed.

   We have a pen of twenty sheep.

3. an enclosure used for confinement or safekeeping.

   We have built several pens to hold our harvest of corn.

4. playpen.

5. bull pen.

6. a dock having a protective concrete structure overhead, used to service and repair submarines.

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verb (used with object)

penned, pent, penning

1. to confine in or as in a pen.

pen ³ American  

[pen] / pɛn /

noun

Slang.

1. penitentiary.

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pen ⁴ American  

[pen] / pɛn /

noun

1. a female swan.

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pen- ⁵ American  

1. variant of pene- before a vowel.

   penannular.

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Pen. ⁶ American  

Or pen.

abbreviation

1. peninsula.

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P.E.N. ⁷ American  

abbreviation

1. International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists.

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pen ¹ British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. an implement for writing or drawing using ink, formerly consisting of a sharpened and split quill, and now of a metal nib attached to a holder See also ballpoint fountain pen

2. the writing end of such an implement; nib

3. style of writing

4. 1. writing as an occupation

   2. the written word

      the pen is mightier than the sword

5. the long horny internal shell of a squid

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verb

1. (tr) to write or compose

pen ² British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. an enclosure in which domestic animals are kept

   sheep pen

2. any place of confinement

3. a dock for servicing submarines, esp one having a bombproof roof

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verb

1. (tr) to enclose or keep in a pen

PEN ³ British  

/ pɛn /

acronym

1. International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists

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Pen. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. Peninsula

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pen ⁵ British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. informal short for penitentiary

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pen ⁶ British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. a female swan

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pen Idioms  

1. see slip of the lip (pen).

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Other Word Forms

• penner
  noun
• penlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pen¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English penn(e), from Old French penne “pen, feather,” from Late Latin penna “pen,” from Latin penna, pinna “feather, wing”

Origin of pen²

First recorded before 1000; (noun) Middle English penne, Old English penn (in compounds); perhaps akin to pin; (verb) Middle English pennen, derivative of the noun

Origin of pen³

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; shortened form

Origin of pen⁴

First recorded in 1540–50; origin uncertain

Explanation

A pen is an ink-filled tool that you use for writing or drawing. Doing a crossword puzzle with a pen shows a lot of self confidence, since you can't erase your answers. Pen is also a verb meaning "to write," especially when you're writing something of literary value: "She's my favorite writer — I can't wait for her to pen another novel!" Then there's the pen that you keep your pet donkey safely inside (you can also say you pen him in there), and inspired by this "livestock enclosure" meaning there's also the slang for "penitentiary" or "jail."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pen pen- Pen. P.E.N. PEN penned penning pent

Cinematographer Brendan Galvin and editors David Rosenbloom and Joe Rosenbloom take us inside the bodyguard’s POV as he notes each pen click, pocket grasp and suspicious glance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

Earlier this year, it came out with the multidose KwikPen for Zepbound, which is less expensive than the single-dose pen.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026

Such overarching public sentiment inspired Johnson to pen a 700-word essay on why that mindset was the “most interesting phenomenon happening on earth right now.”

From Slate ● Jul. 31, 2026

Can moving India's biggest entrance examinations from pen and paper to computers finally break the country's seemingly endless cycle of exam question leaks?

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

Dr. Cain went over and moved a few things on her desk until she found her pen, grabbed a small legal pad and settled into the big chair across from me.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

It is no longer only the artist that is put under contract but his pen- children, who are copyrighted by the middleman.

From Time Magazine Archive

Cross pen- and-pencil sets, records listened to twice and then abandoned, clothes that were too large, too small—that never seemed worth transporting to the increasingly cramped apartments he inhabited over the years.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri

And he called for pen- case and paper and wrote down what was graven on the first tablet.

From The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 06 by Sir Richard Francis Burton

This is the pen- and-ink sketch drawn from memory by Hogarth, long after Fielding's death, to serve as a frontispiece for Murphy's edition of his works.

From Fielding by Austin Dobson

I'll never forgive myself, ye poor gentle heart, to throw pens and pen- wipers at ye, that did your best, poor boy!

From Sandra Belloni — Volume 5 by George Meredith

“For now we’re with Marine Le Pen. The party functions well. But then, if somebody else comes along, that’s possible,” said Julie Apricena, 26, who works for the Front.

From New York Times ● Mar. 10, 2018

It is thought the House do cool: Sir W. Coventry's being for him provoked Sir R. Howard, and his party: Court all for W. Pen. 17th.

From The Diary of Samuel Pepys by Richard Griffin, Baron Braybrooke

President John Galsworthy, in which he cites a resolution recently passed by P.E.N. leadership:

From Time ● Apr. 6, 2016

P.E.N. emerged during a moment of postwar optimism regarding the potential of human fellowship to overcome the contingencies of geopolitical power.

From Time ● Apr. 6, 2016

Given this emphasis on the social, it follows that the earliest materials in the P.E.N. archive strongly feature food, drink, and dance.

From Time ● Apr. 6, 2016

P.E.N. congresses sometimes resemble a lunch-hour stampede of Hollywood extras in makeup.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Kulturbund in Vienna sends an emissary inviting him there also and, like Prague, the Vienna P.E.N.

From Gilbert Keith Chesterton by Maisie Ward

PEN America’s article claims to describe a silent moratorium.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

The writers' association PEN Berlin said Khatib's comments were protected by freedom of expression and that if Tuttle were to be sacked over them, it would cause "immense damage" to the festival.

From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026

According to PEN America, artists and performers across the country report a growing climate of self-censorship, with many avoiding political humor altogether.

From Salon ● Nov. 6, 2025

In 2024, the translated English compilation of Mushtaq's five short story collections published between 1990 and 2012 - Haseena and Other Stories - won the PEN Translation Prize.

From BBC ● May 20, 2025

They held up their right hands and read the oath Nick had written out: From this day on and forever, I will never use the word PEN again.

From "Frindle" by Andrew Clements

On a Turkish hillside overlooking the olive-covered slopes outside Izmir is a cave known to generations of locals as the place where Homer penned "The Odyssey".

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

Mr. Scholz composed nine of the LP’s 11 tracks, co-writing “Smokin’ ” with Delp, who penned “Let Me Take You Home Tonight.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

Its chief penned a letter on 29 July pleading with those who have remained to leave immediately, saying that Ontario firefighters cannot do their jobs safely with people still in their homes.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

Woodall still works at the Economist as the Asian editor, but the commemorative article published in the August issue was penned by Simon Cox.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

In his badly penned sigmas and deltas she spied the shaking hand of her son’s growing anxiety.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Here are their rules to penning the perfect out-of-office reply.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

After a steady run of penning, producing and directing various projects, Blaustein made a career pivot in 2012.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

He studied and wrote poetry in detention, penning his verses on cigarette boxes when he couldn't access paper.

From Barron's ● Feb. 16, 2026

She started at the Journal covering the New York City restaurant industry, later penning a metro column for a year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 10, 2026

He finishes penning a small detail on Wolverine’s leg muscle and finally looks up.

From "A Step from Heaven" by An Na

“There isn’t a lot of pent up inflationary pressure in the economy,” Macklem said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

Australian migration agent Mark Welch said there was a pent up demand following Brexit, which was combined with those who weren't able to go because of Covid-19.

From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2025

Toxic energy and animosity get pent up, and carried out into the yard.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2025

The result is a pent up demand that lures workers to come illegally.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2025

Tell me what happened, but there was such a powerful need in me, pent up for so long, to speak about it, to say the words.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

Related Words

• fountain pen
• marker
• stick