fen

¹ American  

[fen] / fɛn /

noun

1. low land covered wholly or partially with water; boggy land; a marsh.

2. the Fens, a marshy region W and S of The Wash, in E England.

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fen ² American  

[fen] / fɛn /

noun

plural

fen

1. an aluminum coin and monetary unit of the People's Republic of China, the hundredth part of a yuan or the tenth part of a jiao.

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fen ¹ British  

/ fɛn /

noun

1. low-lying flat land that is marshy or artificially drained

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fen ² British  

/ fɛn /

noun

1. a monetary unit of the People's Republic of China, worth one hundredth of a yuan

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Etymology

Origin of fen¹

before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Old Norse fen quagmire, Gothic fani mud, Dutch ven, German Fenn fen, bog

Origin of fen²

First recorded in 1905–10, fen is from the Chinese word fēn

Example Sentences

Milk parsley is their key food plant and formed part of East Yorkshire's natural fen landscape until large-scale drainage in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

From BBC

She said in the late 1800s, lots of the agricultural workers in Cambridgeshire would skate on the fens as a hobby, a mode of travel or compete in it as a sport.

From BBC

The primary cause of the plants decline has been habitat loss through drainage and abandonment of the fens.

From BBC

The New Forest is home to ancient woodland, fens, heaths and bogs, making it a diverse habitat.

From BBC

The 32-year-old photographer from Suffolk, who has previously documented fen skaters in rural Cambridgeshire, said he was drawn to a ploughing match for the same reason: a celebration of hobbies in rural communities.

From BBC