Jump To:

• 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.

---

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.

---

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.

---

pen ⁴ American  

[pen] / pɛn /

noun

1. a female swan.

---

pen- ⁵ American  

1. variant of pene- before a vowel.

   penannular.

---

Pen. ⁶ American  

Or pen.

abbreviation

1. peninsula.

---

P.E.N. ⁷ American  

abbreviation

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

---

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

---

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

---

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

---

Pen. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. Peninsula

---

pen ⁵ British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. informal short for penitentiary

---

pen ⁶ British  

/ pɛn /

noun

1. a female swan

---

pen Idioms  

1. see slip of the lip (pen).

---

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

If a similar offer lands in your inbox, work through these five questions before you pick up the pen.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

Asked Monday if Trump might sign a future deal in pen, Carney said: "I don't know that."

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

A pen portrait was read out by 2nd Lt George's mother, Vivienne, during the hearing.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

By the Belgian Grand Prix, he was so frustrated by a qualifying session that he burst into tears in the media pen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

Confused, hot, my blood racing, I tried to busy myself with the tiny piece of paper and my pen.

From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott

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

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

Now he snatched the little missive up with a strangely impulsive ardour, and being quite alone, indulged himself in the pleasure of kissing the firm free pen- strokes with all the passion of a boy.

From God's Good Man by Marie Corelli

Two or three chroniclers of the day have left us pen- pictures of the French Canadians as they were before the English came.

From The Seigneurs of Old Canada : A Chronicle of New World Feudalism by William Bennett Munro

“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

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. 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

In the course of researching how South Asian writers circulated in literary London between the World Wars, I spent some time immersed in the Harry Ransom Center’s expansive P.E.N. archive.

From Time ● Apr. 6, 2016

Meanwhile, Portuguese intellectuals protested the banning of the books as did the American P.E.N., the noted association of writers.

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

In 2007, responding to a proposed British boycott of Israel, PEN declared that it “emphatically opposes any efforts to inhibit the free international exchange of literature, art, information, or knowledge.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

At one point, PEN veers toward moral clarity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

In a joint statement on Monday, some 20 NGOs including Amnesty International and writers' rights group PEN America said the allegations against Tadjadit were "baseless" and called for his release.

From Barron's ● Nov. 11, 2025

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

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

Under pressure from Commonwealth countries over Britain's pivotal part in transatlantic slavery, Burnham penned a newspaper op-ed published earlier Saturday that argued: "We need to face up to the past."

From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2026

Hugh Jackman, who played Wolverine in over 10 Marvel films, penned a tribute on Instagram.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

In August 2025, she penned a letter to Putin, telling him it was "time to protect children and future generations worldwide".

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

The pulmonologist Dr. Hasmeena Kathuria penned a column in the Washington Post last week debunking wellness claims about nicotine and underscoring its risks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Now tykes were penned there, enclosed by thorn bushes.

From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry

Before “The Holdovers,” Payne is credited with penning most of the scripts that became his acclaimed films.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Here she comes again, penning a song for the 2005 movie “Transamerica” that would go on to receive an Academy Award nomination.

From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026

Wilson -- behind an acclaimed translation which Nolan has praised -- generated headlines this week after penning a scathing critique of his screenplay.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

Prior to his TV career, Shalit was a senior film critic for Look Magazine, and continued to spend years penning columns in the New York Times, Ladies' Home Journal and TV Guide.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

The earliest recorded contest took place at Chalds in around 700 bc, the poet Hesiod proudly penning a few lines in celebration of his winning a solo singing class there.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Demand was so pent up that it crashed the website of distributor Vinegar Syndrome more than once.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026

Aswan remembers taking her driving theory test: "I got so pent up about passing it first time that when I failed by a couple of points I've never tried to get it back."

From BBC ● Nov. 19, 2025

Jefferson played with the ferocity of nearly two years of pent up football frustration.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 6, 2024

“Post-COVID, we got this big influx of revenge travel, where everyone’s so pent up indoors and they’re just like, ‘Get me out there,’ ” McElroy explains.

From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2024

I could feel it, and smell it, pent up there, behind the clouds.

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• fountain pen
• marker
• stick

---