keen

/kiːn/

//kiːn// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"keen" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“keen” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #5,804) as an adjective. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#5,804
frequency rank, English
1,236
“K” headwords
3
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Often with a prepositional phrase, or with to and an infinitive: showing a quick and ardent responsiveness or willingness; eager, enthusiastic, interested.

Corpus desk

Index EN-keen · keen · English

keen · rank #5,804 · 3 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,804
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 3 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,236
  • PHOTO-FINISH infected

Nearest frequency peer: infected (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “keen”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “keen” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

keen vs key
50% similar
keen vs ken
75% similar
keen vs kin
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for keen
PropertyValue
Headwordkeen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/kiːn/
Letters4
Frequency rank#5,804
Misspellings tracked3
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “keen” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).keenlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “infected” (#5,803), “Kenya” (#5,805), “iconic” (#5,802). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for keen is neighbouring look-alikes ("key", "ken", …), not just typos; it is anadjective pronounced /kiːn/. Frequency #5,804 among 1,236 “K” headwords. 9 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 3 likely wrong-spelling variants for keen, with forms such as "eken", "keenn", and "kkeen". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "key", "ken", "kin", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English kene (“bold, brave, sharp”), from Old English cēne (“keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful; learned, clever, wise”), from Proto-Germanic *kōniz (“knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵn… The correct English form is keen, spelled K-E-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Often with a prepositional phrase, or with to and an infinitive: showing a quick and ardent responsiveness or willingness; eager, enthusiastic, interested.
  2. 2
    Fierce, intense, vehement.
  3. 3
    Having a fine edge or point; sharp.
  4. 4
    Acute of mind, having or expressing mental acuteness; penetrating, sharp.
  5. 5
    Acrimonious, bitter, piercing.
  6. 6
    Of cold, wind, etc.: cutting, penetrating, piercing, sharp.
  7. 7
    Of prices, extremely low as to be competitive.
  8. 8
    Marvelous.
  9. 9
    Brave, courageous; audacious, bold.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how keen appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. I’m keen on computers.
  2. I’m keen on you.

Etymology

From Middle English kene (“bold, brave, sharp”), from Old English cēne (“keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful; learned, clever, wise”), from Proto-Germanic *kōniz (“knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know”). Cognate with Danish køn (“handsome, pretty”), Dutch kien (“smart, wise, able”), koen (“daring, valiant, doughty, courageous”), German kühn (“bold, daring, audacious, hardy, valiant, venturesome”), Icelandic kænn (“wise, crafty, clever, able”), Faroese kønur (“expert (in, on), experienced, skilful, able, capable”), Scots keen (“lively, brisk; avaricious”). Related to Old English cunnan (“to know how to, be able to”). More at cunning, can.

Synonyms

ardenteagerpromptsharpbitingcuttingpiercingacutepenetratingshrewdintelligent

This word in other languages

entusiasta(Español)scharf(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eken
  • keenn
  • kkeen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of keen - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

eken2keenn1kkeen1
Edit distance from "keen"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "keen"?
"keen" is spelled K-E-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /kiːn/.
What does "keen" mean?
As an adjective, "keen" means: Often with a prepositional phrase, or with to and an infinitive: showing a quick and ardent responsiveness or willingness; eager, enthusiastic, interested.
What words are commonly confused with "keen"?
"keen" is commonly confused with "key", "ken", "kin". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "keen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "keen" is /kiːn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "keen"?
From Middle English kene (“bold, brave, sharp”), from Old English cēne (“keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful; learned, clever, wise”), from Proto-Germanic *kōniz (“knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable”), from Proto-Indo-Eu... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "keen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

mere#5,812disc#5,782Cuba#5,779cage#5,766

What to do next

You've looked up "keen". Here's where to go from here.

  • "keen" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "key". View pair
  • 3 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #5,804 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "K" letter cohort. K–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list