Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

pen

[ˈpʰɛn]

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.38 in modern English

Syllables
pen
IPA
[ˈpʰɛn]
5
Scrabble Score
3
Letters
1
Syllables
3
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.

noun

A penitentiary, i.e. a state or federal prison for convicted felons.

Slang

noun

The bullpen.

verb

To enclose in a pen.

Transitive verb

noun

A tool, originally made from a feather but now usually a small tubular instrument, containing ink used to write or make marks.

noun

A writer, or their style.

noun

Marks of ink left by a pen.

Colloquial

noun

A light pen.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English pen, penne (“enclosure for animals”), from Old English penn (“enclosure, fold, pen”), from Proto-Germanic *pennō, *pannijō (“pin, bolt, nail, tack”), from Proto-Indo-European *bend- (“pointed peg, nail, edge”). Related to pin. Sense “prison” originally figurative extension to “enclosure for persons” (1845), later influenced by penitentiary (“prison”), being analyzed as an abbreviation (1884).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /pɛn/
  • British English: /pɛn/

Usage

Inflected Forms

pens (plural) pens (present, singular) penning (participle, present) penned (participle, past) penned (past) pent (participle, past) pent (past) the Pen (canonical)

Derived Forms

bullpen cowpen henpen hogpen impen penkeeper penkeeping pennage pentrough pigpen playpen unpen

Phrases

blast pen cattle pen crush pen goose-pen Pen Mill potato pen shuck pen pent-up

Frequently Paired Words

pin prison pin-pen merger

Synonyms

biro pen swaness penitentiary playpen write compose indite

Homonyms

pin (pin–pen merger)

Rhymes With

when then again men ten ben en gen cnn ken den sen

Questions

How do you pronounce pen?
The recorded pronunciation is [ˈpʰɛn].
What does pen mean?
An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.
Where does pen come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce pen

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “pen”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling ([ˈpʰɛn]) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “pen”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “pen” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.