en

1 of 5

noun

1
: the width of a piece of type half the width of an em
2
: the letter n

en-

2 of 5

prefix (1)

variants or less commonly em-
in,
 also  en;
 sometimes only  in,
 is shown when  is infrequent en
1
: put into or onto
enthrone
: cover with
enshroud
: go into or onto
enplane
in verbs formed from nouns
2
: cause to be
enslave
in verbs formed from adjectives or nouns
3
: provide with
empower
in verbs formed from nouns
4
: so as to cover
enwrap
: thoroughly
entangle
in verbs formed from verbs
in all senses usually em- before b, m, or p

en-

3 of 5

prefix (2)

variants or less commonly em-
: in : within
enzootic
usually em- before b, m, or p
empathy

-en

4 of 5

adjective suffix

variants or less commonly -n
: made of : consisting of
earthen
leathern

-en

5 of 5

verb suffix

1
a
: cause to be
sharpen
b
: cause to have
lengthen
2
a
: come to be
steepen
b
: come to have
lengthen

Word History

Etymology

Prefix (1)

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin in-, im-, from in

Prefix (2)

Middle English, from Latin, from Greek, from en in — more at in

Adjective suffix

Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German -īn made of, Latin -īnus of or belonging to, Greek -inos made of, of or belonging to

Verb suffix

Middle English -nen, from Old English -nian; akin to Old High German -inōn -en

First Known Use

Noun

1792, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of en was in 1792

Dictionary Entries Near en

Cite this Entry

“En.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/en. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

en-

1 of 3 prefix
variants also em-
e,
 also occurs in these prefixes although only  i,
 may be shown as in  ",
 engage  "
1
: put into or onto
encode
enthrone
: go into or onto
enplane
2
: cause to be
enslave
3
: provide with
empower
4
: so as to cover
enwrap
: thoroughly
entangle
in all senses usually em- before b, m, or p

-en

2 of 3 adjective suffix
ən
variants also -n
n
: made of : consisting of
earthen
woolen

-en

3 of 3 verb suffix
1
: become or cause to be
sharpen
2
: cause or come to have
lengthen
Etymology

Prefix

derived from Latin in- "in, into, put into"

Adjective suffix

Old English -en (adjective suffix)

Verb suffix

Old English -nian (verb suffix)

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