keen¹ (kēn)
adj., keen·er, keen·est.

1. Having a fine, sharp cutting edge or point.
2. Having or marked by intellectual quickness and acuity. See synonyms at sharp.
3. Acutely sensitive: a keen ear.
4. Sharp; vivid; strong: "His entire body hungered for keen sensation, something exciting" (Richard Wright).
5. Intense; piercing: a keen wind.
6. Pungent; acrid: A keen smell of skunk was left behind.
7. 1. Ardent; enthusiastic: a keen chess player.
   2. Eagerly desirous: keen on going to Europe in the spring.
8. Slang. Great; splendid; fine: What a keen day!

[Middle English kene, from Old English cēne, brave.]

keenly keen'ly adv.
keenness keen'ness n.

keen² (kēn)
n.
A loud, wailing lament for the dead.

intr.v., keened, keen·ing, keens.
To wail in lamentation, especially for the dead. See synonyms at cry.

[From Irish Gaelic caoineadh, from caoninim, I lament, from Old Irish caínim, coínim, perhaps of Brittonic origin.]

keener keen'er n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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