Pen or pin?
pen is a noun meaning “An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially…”; pin is a noun meaning “A needle without an eye (usually) made of drawn-out steel wire with one end…”. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) pen is about as common as pin.
What is the difference between pen and pin?
| pen | pin | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, verb | noun, verb |
| Meaning | An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle The bullpen To enclose in a pen | A needle without an eye (usually) made of drawn-out steel wire with one end sharpened and the other flattened or rounded into a head, used for fastening A small nail with a head and a sharp point To fasten or attach (something) with a pin |
| Example | There are two steers in the third pen | Pull the pin out of the grenade before throwing it at the enemy |
| Forms | pens | pins |
| Pronunciation | /pɛn/ [ˈpʰɛn] /pɪn/ | /pɪn/ [ˈpʰɪn] /pən/ |
| In writing | 24 times per million words | 19 times per million words |
Sources: pen and pin in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of pen and pin
pen
- 1
An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle
There are two steers in the third pen
- 2
To enclose in a pen
- 3
A tool, originally made from a feather but now usually a small tubular instrument, containing ink used to write or make marks
He took notes with a pen
- 4
To write (an article, a book, etc.)
- 5
A female swan
- 6
slangPenalty
England won 3-1 on pens
- 7
informalPenetration
- 8
Abbreviation of polyethylene naphthalate
pin
- 1
A needle without an eye (usually) made of drawn-out steel wire with one end sharpened and the other flattened or rounded into a head, used for fastening
- 2
To fasten or attach (something) with a pin
- 3
Alternative form of peen
- 4
A cataract of the eye
- 5
Acronym of personal identification number
- 6
Initialism of preferred IUPAC name
- 7
A small nail with a head and a sharp point
- 8
To cause (a piece) to be in a pin
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, pen or pin?
pen appears 24 times per million words; pin 19 times per million words.
pen 24 times per million wordspin 19 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search pen vs pin?
“pen vs pin” is searched about 590 times a month on Google and 20 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“pin vs pen”, “pen or pin”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.