penknife

[pen-nahyf]

noun

plural

penknives 

1. a small pocketknife, formerly one used for making and sharpening quill pens. pen.

penknife

/ ˈpɛnˌnaɪf /

noun

1. a small knife with one or more blades that fold into the handle; pocketknife

Word History and Origins

Origin of penknife¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; pen ¹, knife

Word History and Origins

Origin of penknife¹

C15: so called because it was originally used for making and repairing quill pens

Example Sentences

She had been playing in a communal stairwell when Wilkes came out of his flat and stabbed her with a penknife three times, once to her jaw, then her shoulder and knee.

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The surgeon in the penknife case, who the BBC is not naming, was operating on a patient at the Royal Sussex Hospital in Brighton when he struggled to find a scalpel.

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He managed to tear a flat strip of wood from a nearby log and with his pearl-handled penknife whittled a shapely handle.

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In others, he utilized a metal comb, or a penknife’s back, or a razor’s edge.

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And their behavior made them notorious, as when Capote threw himself a lavish masquerade party, the Black and White Ball, or when Mailer almost killed his wife by stabbing her with a penknife.

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