pen

1. An instrument for writing or drawing with ink or similar fluid, especially:
   1. A ballpoint pen.
   2. A fountain pen.
   3. A pen point.
   4. A penholder and its pen point.
   5. A quill.
2. An instrument for writing regarded as a means of expression: “Tyranny has no enemy so formidable as the pen” (William Cobbett).
3. A writer or an author: a hired pen.
4. A style of writing: wrote plays with a witty pen.
5. pens Pinions.
6. The chitinous internal shell of a squid.

To write or compose with or as if with a pen.

[Middle English penne, from Old French, from Late Latin penna, from Latin, feather.]

1. 1. A fenced enclosure for animals.
   2. The animals kept in such an enclosure.
   3. Any of various enclosures, such as a bullpen or playpen, used for a variety of purposes.
2. A repair dock for submarines.

To confine in or as if in a pen. See synonyms at enclose.

[Middle English, from Old English penn.]

A female swan.

[Origin unknown.]

A penitentiary; a prison.

[Short for PENITENTIARY.]

verb

To be the author of (a published work or works): publish, write. See words.

verb

To confine within a limited area: cage, coop (in or up), enclose, fence (in), immure, mew (up), shut in, shut up, wall (in or up). See free/unfree.

noun

A place for the confinement of persons in lawful detention: brig, house of correction, jail, keep, penitentiary, prison. Informal lockup. Slang big house, can, clink, cooler, coop, hoosegow, joint, jug, pokey¹, slammer, stir². Chiefly Regional calaboose. See free/unfree.

Definition: enclosure
Antonyms: open space

n

Definition: writing instrument
Antonyms: pencil

v

Definition: enclose
Antonyms: free, let go, release

v

Definition: write
Antonyms: speak

n. a covered dock for a submarine or other warship.

See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.

1. A synonym for room in a four-sided enclosure constructed of logs. Thus, a one-room log cabin is often called a single-pen cabin, and a dogtrot cabin (consisting of two single-room cabins) is often called a double-pen cabin.
2. An enclosure for animals; for example, a pigpen.

1. a small enclosure in which animals are restrained for handling or on a long term basis for intensive feeding. Called also corral.
2. female swan.

• add-on p. — in a feedlot, one in which cattle are put together a few head at a time over several days or weeks. Has a risk for health problems.
• p. check — the daily or twice daily examination of cattle in a feedlot to detect any sick animal. More frequent checks are made in the early period of a feeding program.
• p. checker — the specially selected cowboys whose task it is to carry out intensive pen checks.
• p. design — includes materials for floor and walls, floor drainage and warmth, disposal of feces and urine, sleep area versus feeding area, troughage and drinking facilities, space and number of occupants proposed.
• pen-fed — fed in small, compatible groups in pens to optimize feed utilization.
• holding p. — a pen, paddock or yard for holding a group of sheep or cattle temporarily, e.g. before slaughter, after shearing. A pen to which animals are added one by one until a group of sufficient size is accumulated.
• p. lambing — the ewes are brought in from the pastures and those close to lambing are brought into pens where they can be kept under close observation to ensure carefree lambing and maximum lamb survival. The pens may be indoors or outside.
• p. mating — cows on heat are cut out from the herd and put into the bullpen. Mating is observed and recorded. Provided heat detection is good the reproductive efficiency can be maximal.
• p. space — space allocation per head of livestock proposed to be accommodated.
• p. sweeps — wool swept up from pens, shearing board, races.
• wash p. — a corral or pen with a solid floor and permanent sprinklers or other washing devices that jet upwards for cleaning cows collectively prior to milking. Usually associated with a holding pen.

For other uses, see Pen (disambiguation).

A ballpoint pen

A pen (Latin pinna, feather) is an item used to apply ink to a surface, usually paper; however it can write on many other things. There are several different types, including ballpoint, rollerball, fountain, felt-tip. Historically, reed pens, quill pens, and dip pens were used.

Contents 1 Types 2 History 3 Manufacturers 3.1 United States 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

Types

The main modern types can be categorized by the kind of writing tip:

A letter written on paper with a rollerball pen, and the tip of that pen

• A ballpoint pen dispenses viscous oil-based ink by rolling a small hard sphere, usually 0.7–1.2 mm and made of brass, steel or tungsten carbide.^[1] It automatically sends ink out from a little ball.The ink dries almost immediately on contact with paper. This type of pen is generally inexpensive and reliable. It has replaced the fountain pen as the most popular tool for everyday writing.
• A rollerball pen dispenses a water-based liquid or gel ink through a ball tip similar to that of a ballpoint pen. The less-viscous ink is more-easily absorbed by paper than oil-based ink, and the pen moves more easily across a writing surface. The rollerball pen was initially designed to combine the convenience of a ballpoint pen with the smooth "wet ink" effect of a fountain pen. Gel inks are available in a range of colors, including metallic paint colors and glitter effects.
• A fountain pen uses water-based liquid ink delivered through a nib. The ink flows from a reservoir through a "feed" to the nib, then through the nib, due to capillary action and gravity. The nib has no moving parts and delivers ink through a thin slit to the writing surface. A fountain pen reservoir can be refillable or disposable, this disposable type being an ink cartridge. A pen with a refillable reservoir may have a mechanism, such as a piston, to draw ink from a bottle through the nib, or it may require refilling with an eyedropper. Refillable reservoirs are available for some pens designed to use disposable cartridges.

A fountain pen

• A felt-tip pen, or marker, has a porous tip of fibrous material. The smallest, finest-tipped markers are used for writing on paper. Medium-tip markers are often used by children for coloring. Larger markers are used for writing on other surfaces such as cardboard boxes and whiteboards. Markers with wide tips and bright but transparent ink, called highlighters, are used to mark existing text. Markers designed for children or for temporary writing (as with a whiteboard or overhead projector) typically use non-permanent inks. Large markers used to label shipping cases or other packages are usually permanent markers.

These historic types of pens are no longer in common use:

• A dip pen (or nib pen) consists of a metal nib with capillary channels, like that of a fountain pen, mounted on a handle or holder, often made of wood. A dip pen usually has no ink reservoir and must be repeatedly recharged with ink while drawing or writing. The dip pen has certain advantages over a fountain pen. It can use waterproof pigmented (particle-and-binder-based) inks, such as so-called India ink, drawing ink, or acrylic inks, which would destroy a fountain pen by clogging, as well as the traditional iron gall ink, which can cause corrosion in a fountain pen. Dip pens are now mainly used in illustration, calligraphy, and comics (notably manga).
• A quill is a pen made from a flight feather of a large bird, most often a goose. Quills were used as instruments for writing with ink before the metal dip pen, the fountain pen, and eventually the ballpoint pen came into use. The shaft of the feather acts as an ink reservoir, and ink flows to the tip by capillary action. Quill pens were used in medieval times to write on parchment or paper. The quill eventually replaced the reed pen.
• A reed pen is cut from a reed or bamboo, with a slit in a narrow tip. Its mechanism is essentially similar to that of a quill.

History

Ancient Egyptians had developed writing on papyrus scrolls when scribes used thin reed brushes or reed pens from the Juncus Maritimus or sea rush ^[2]. In his book A History of Writing, Steven Roger Fischer suggests that on the basis of finds at Saqqara, the reed pen might well have been used for writing on parchment as long ago as the First Dynasty or about 3000 BC. Reed pens continued to be used until the Middle Ages although they were slowly replaced by quills from about the 7th century.

The quill pen was used in Qumran, Judea to write some of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and then introduced into Europe by around 700 AD. It was used in 1787 to write and sign the Constitution of the United States of America. The Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947 on the northwest bank of the Dead Sea date back to around 100 BC. At that time they were written in Hebrew dialects with bird feathers or quills. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Europeans had difficulty in obtaining reeds and began to use quills. There is a specific reference to quills in the writings of St. Isidore of Seville in the 7th century^[3]. Quill pens were used until the 19th century.

A bronze nib was found in the ruins of Pompei showing that metal nibs were used in the year 79^[4]. There is also a reference in Samuel Pepys' diary for August 1663. A metal pen point was patented in 1803 but the patent was not commercially exploited. John Mitchell of Birmingham started to mass produce pens with metal nibs in 1822^[5], and thereafter the quality of steel nibs had improved enough that dip pens with metal nibs came into generalized use.

M. Klein and Henry W. Wynne received US patent #68445 in 1867 for an ink chamber and delivery system in the handle of the fountain pen.

The earliest historical record of a reservoir fountain pen dates back to the 10th century. In 953, Ma'ād al-Mu'izz, the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt, demanded a pen which would not stain his hands or clothes, and was provided with a pen which held ink in a reservoir and delivered it to the nib via gravity and capillary action.^[6][7] While a student in Paris, Romanian Petrache Poenaru re-invented the fountain pen, which the French Government patented in May 1827. Fountain pen patents and production then increased in the 1850s, especially steel pens produced by the same John Mitchell.

Waterman pen and fountain pens made for Air France’s Concorde

In his Deliciae Physico-Mathematicae (1636), German inventor Daniel Schwenter described a pen made from two quills. One quill served as a reservoir for ink inside the other quill. The ink was sealed inside the quill with cork. Ink was squeezed through a small hole to the writing point.

The first patent on a ballpoint pen was issued on October 30 1888, to John J Loud^[8]. In 1938, László Bíró, a Hungarian newspaper editor, with the help of his brother George, a chemist, began to work on designing new types of pens including one with a tiny ball in its tip that was free to turn in a socket. As the pen moved along the paper, the ball rotated, picking up ink from the ink cartridge and leaving it on the paper.

Bíró filed a British patent on June 15, 1938. In 1940 the Bíró brothers and a friend, Juan Jorge Meyne, moved to Argentina fleeing Nazi Germany and on June 10, filed another patent, and formed Bíró Pens of Argentina. By the summer of 1943 the first commercial models were available^[9]. Erasable ballpoint pens were introduced by Papermate in 1979 when the Erasermate was put on the market.^[10]

Modern marker pens

In the 1960s the fibre, or felt-tipped pen was invented by Yukio Horie of the Tokyo Stationery Company, Japan^[11]. Papermate's Flair was among the first felt-tip pens to hit the U.S. market in the 1960s, and it has been the leader ever since. Marker pens and highlighters, both similar to felt pens, have become popular in recent years.

Rollerball pens were introduced in the early 1980s. They make use of a mobile ball and liquid ink to produce a smoother line. Technological advances achieved during the late 1980s and early 1990s have improved the roller ball's overall performance. A porous point pen contains a point that is made of some porous material such as felt or ceramic. A high quality drafting pen will usually have a ceramic tip, since this wears well and does not broaden when pressure is applied while writing.

Although the invention of the personal computer with the keyboard input method have changed how users write, the pen has not been entirely replaced and likely won't any time soon.^[12] Higher end pens including archaic types such as fountain pens are still a status symbol.^[13][14]

Manufacturers

The examples and perspective in this section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page.

United States

Statistics on writing instruments (including pencils) from WIMA (the U.S. Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association) show that in 2005, retractable ball point pens were by far the most popular in the United States (26%), followed by standard ball points (14%). Other categories represented very small fractions (3% or less)^[15]. There is however also a thriving industry in luxury pens, often fountain pens, sometimes priced at $1000 or more.^[16]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: pens

Look up pen in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Calligraphy
• Counterfeit banknote detection pen
• Frindle
• Gel pen
• Ink
• Pen and ink
• Pen spinning
• Pencil
• Space Pen
• Stylus
• Technical pen

References

1. ^ "How does a ballpoint pen work?". Engineering. HowStuffWorks. 1998–2007. http://science.howstuffworks.com/question683.htm. Retrieved on 2007-11-16. 
2. ^ Egyptian reed pen Retrieved March 16, 2007.
3. ^ The Etymologies of Isidore of Seville, Cambridge Catalogue Retrieved March 11, 2007.
4. ^ Arnold Wagner - Dip Pens. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
5. ^ More about the pen trade from The Birmingham Jewellery Quarter site. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
6. ^ Bosworth, C. E. (Autumn 1981), "A Mediaeval Islamic Prototype of the Fountain Pen?", Journal of Semitic Studies XXVl (i) 
7. ^ ""Origins of the Fountain Pen "". Muslimheritage.com. http://www.muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?articleID=365. Retrieved on September 18 2007. 
8. ^ GB Patent No. 15630, October 30, 1888
9. ^ The Ballpoint Pen, Quido Magazin. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
10. ^ Papermate official site.
11. ^ History of Pens & Writing Instruments, About Inventors site. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
12. ^ http://www.rediff.com/netguide/2003/may/05genx.htm
13. ^ http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2008/08/17/the_power_of_the_pen/
14. ^ http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-3935131.html
15. ^ WIMA website. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
16. ^ Low-tech luxury Gift or accessory, jewelry designers see business in luxe writing tools , Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, March 12, 2007.

External links

• History of the Pen
• Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association
• Photo of Flair Fi Fo Fum package

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - pen, kuglepen
v. tr. - skrive, fæste på papir

idioms:

• pen and ink    pen og blæk
• pen friend    penneven
• pen name    pseudonym
• pen pal    penneven
• put pen to paper    sætte pennen til papiret

2.
n. - fold
v. tr. - lukke inde (i fold)

3.
n. - hunsvane

4.
n. - tugthus, fængsel

Nederlands (Dutch)
pen, schrijfstijl, hok, bajes, vrouwtjeszwaan, duikbootdok, plantage (Jamaica), schiereiland, binnenste schaal van inktvis, opsluiten (als) in hok, componeren/ schrijven, P.E.N. (vereniging van schrijvers/dichters etc.)

Français (French)
1.
n. - stylo, stylo à bille, stylo à plume, (vivre) de sa plume, écrivain, auteur, style (d'écriture), pinions (npl), (Zool) partie cornée d'une coquille de calmar
v. tr. - écrire, rédiger

idioms:

• pen and ink    à la plume
• pen friend    correspondant
• pen name    nom de plume
• pen pal    correspondant
• put pen to paper    écrire, prendre la plume, signer

2.
n. - enclos, parc, animaux parqués, dock de réparation pour les sous-marins
v. tr. - mettre dans un enclos

3.
n. - (Zool) cygne femelle

4.
n. - (US) taule, prison

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Federhalter, Feder
v. - aufschreiben, einpferchen

idioms:

• pen and ink    Feder-
• pen friend    Brieffreund
• pen name    Schriftstellername
• pen pal    Brieffreund
• put pen to paper    schreiben

2.
n. - Pferch
v. - einpferchen

3.
n. - weiblicher Schwan

4.
n. - Zuchthaus

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - στιλό, γραφίδα, φτερό γραφής, πένα, μαντρί, κλουβί (για κότες), (ΗΠΑ) φυλακή
v. - μαντρώνω, κλείνω σε μαντρί, γράφω ή συνθέτω κείμενο
abbr. - Διεθνής Οργάνωση Συγγραφέων

idioms:

• pen and ink    με πενάκι
• pen friend    φίλος σε άλλη χώρα με τον οποίο κάποιος έχει αλληλογραφία
• pen name    φιλολογικό ψευδώνυμο
• pen pal    φίλος σε άλλη χώρα με τον οποίο κάποιος έχει αλληλογραφία
• put pen to paper    πιάνω μολύβι και χαρτί

Italiano (Italian)
gattabuia, penna, gabbia, scrivere, associazione di scrittori

idioms:

• pen and ink    carta e penna
• pen friend/pal    amico di penna
• pen name    pseudonimo
• put pen to paper    mettere per iscritto

Português (Portuguese)
n. - caneta (f), pena (f), chiqueiro (m), cercado (m)
v. - escrever, colocar no chiqueiro, encurralar
abbr. - penitenciária

idioms:

• pen and ink    bico de pena
• pen friend/pal    amigo por correspondência
• pen name    pseudônimo
• put pen to paper    pôr no papel, escrever

Русский (Russian)
ручка, загон, тюряга, писать, полуостров, Пен-клуб

idioms:

• pen and ink    рисунок пером
• pen friend/pal    корреспондент
• pen name    псевдоним
• put pen to paper    писать, расписываться

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - pluma, bolígrafo, plumilla, Asociación Internacional de Poetas, Dramaturgos, Redactores, Ensayistas y Novelistas
v. tr. - escribir, componer

idioms:

• pen and ink    dibujo a pluma
• pen friend    amigo epistolar, amigo por correspondencia
• pen name    seudónimo
• pen pal    amigo epistolar, amigo por correspondencia
• put pen to paper    tomar la pluma, ponerse a escribir

2.
n. - corral, redil, jaula, gallinero
v. tr. - encerrar en un corral, redil, jaula o gallinero

3.
n. - hembra del cisne

4.
n. - chirona, gayola, cárcel, penitenciería

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - fålla, bur, hage, penna, svanhona, fängelse
v. - instänga, spärra in, skriva, nedteckna, avfatta
abbr. - penitentiary fängelse

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 笔, 钢笔, 笔调, 文笔, 笔法, 写, 写作

idioms:

• pen and ink    笔墨
• pen friend    笔友
• pen name    笔名
• pen pal    笔友
• put pen to paper    落笔

2. 栏, 圈, 潜艇修理坞, 一栏家畜, 婴儿围栏, 把关入围栏, 囚禁, 把...关起来

3. 监狱

4. 笔, 钢笔, 笔调, 文笔, 笔法

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 筆, 鋼筆, 筆調, 文筆, 筆法
v. tr. - 寫, 寫作

idioms:

• pen and ink    筆墨
• pen friend    筆友
• pen name    筆名
• pen pal    筆友
• put pen to paper    落筆

2.
n. - 欄, 圈, 潛艇修理塢, 一欄家畜, 嬰兒圍欄
v. tr. - 把關入圍欄, 囚禁, 把...關起來

3.
n. - 監獄

4.
n. - 筆, 鋼筆, 筆調, 文筆, 筆法

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 펜촉 (펜촉과 펜대를 합하여), 문체, 작가
v. tr. - 쓰다, 저술하다

idioms:

• put pen to paper    쓰기 시작하다

2.
n. - 울타리, (식료품 따위의) 저장소, 감화원
v. tr. - 울안에 넣다, 감금하다

3.
n. - 백조의 암컷

4.
n. - 교도소

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ペン, 文筆, 文体, 囲い, ベビーサークル, 潜水艦待避所, 文筆家, 作家, 畜舎
v. - 書く, 囲いに入れる

idioms:

• pen and ink    ペンで書いた
• pen friend/pal    文通友だち
• pen name    ペンネーム
• put pen to paper    ペンを執る

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) ريشه الكتابه, قلم حبر, حظيرة, زريبه, حوض كبير لإصلاح الغواصات (فعل) يضع في زريبه, يذبح, يحرر, يسطر رساله (اختصار) إختصار لكلمه : شبه جزيرة Peninsula‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮עט, סגנון כתיבה, סופר, ההתאחדות הבינלאומית של היוצרים בתחום הכתיבה, מקצוע הכתיבה‬
v. tr. - ‮כתב‬
n. - ‮לול-תינוק, גדרה, שטח מגודר לצוללות‬
v. tr. - ‮הכניס לגדרה‬
n. - ‮ברבור ממין נקבה‬
n. - ‮מכלאה, מוסד לעבריינים (ארה"ב), הצדפה הסחוסית של הדיונון‬

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