Pen vs. Pin — What's the Difference?

To write or compose literary work.

A piece of jewelry or ornament that fastens with a clasp.

A confined space in a penitentiary.

To hold something firmly in a fixed position.

A pen is a common writing instrument used to apply ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Historically, reed pens, quill pens, and dip pens were used, with a nib dipped in ink.

A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together, and can have three sorts of body: a shaft of a rigid inflexible material meant to be inserted in a slot, groove, or hole (as with pivots, hinges, and jigs); a shaft connected to a head and ending in a sharp tip meant to pierce one or more pieces of soft materials like cloth or paper (the straight or push pin); a single strip of a rigid but flexible material (e.g. a wire) whose length has been folded into parallel prongs in such fashion that the middle length of each curves towards the other so that, when anything is inserted between them, they act as a clamp (e.g.

An instrument for writing or drawing with ink, typically consisting of a metal nib or ball, or a nylon tip, fitted into a metal or plastic holder.

An identifying number allocated to an individual by a bank or other organization and used for validating electronic transactions.

The tapering cartilaginous internal shell of a squid.

Attach or fasten with a pin or pins

A small enclosure in which sheep, pigs, or other farm animals are kept

Hold (someone) firmly in a specified position so they are unable to move

(in the West Indies) a farm or plantation.

Hinder or prevent (a piece or pawn) from moving because of the danger to a more valuable piece standing behind it along the line of an attack

A female swan.

A short, straight, stiff piece of wire with a blunt head and a sharp point, used especially for fastening.

Short for penitentiary (sense 1)

Something, such as a safety pin, that resembles such a piece of wire in shape or use.

Write or compose

A whit; a jot

Put or keep (an animal) in a pen

A thin rod for securing the ends of fractured bones.

A ballpoint pen.

A peg for fixing the crown to the root of a tooth.

A fountain pen.

A cotter pin.

A pen point.

The part of a key stem entering a lock.

A penholder and its pen point.

(Music) One of the pegs securing the strings and regulating their tension on a stringed instrument.

A quill.

(Nautical) A belaying pin.

An instrument for writing regarded as a means of expression

(Nautical) A thole pin.

A writer or an author

An ornament fastened to clothing by means of a clasp.

A style of writing

A rolling pin.

A pen-shaped device containing something other than ink

One of the wooden clubs at which the ball is aimed in bowling.

Any of various other pen-shaped devices, such as a laser pointer.

A flagstick.

The chitinous internal shell of a squid.

See fall.

A pen shell.

Pins(Informal) The legs

Pens(Archaic) The primary feathers or wings of a bird.

(Electronics) A lead on a device that plugs into a socket to connect the device to a system.

A fenced enclosure for animals.

Any of the pegs on the platen of a printer, which engage holes at the edges of paper.

The animals kept in such an enclosure.

Any of the styluses that form a dot matrix on a printer.

Any of various enclosures, such as a bullpen or playpen, used for a variety of purposes.

Any of the small metal prongs at the end of a connector that fit into the holes in a port.

A roofed dock for submarines.

To fasten or secure with or as if with a pin or pins.

A female swan.

To transfix.

A penitentiary; a prison.

To place in a position of trusting dependence

To write or compose

To hold fast; immobilize

To confine in or as if in a pen.

(Sports) To win a fall from in wrestling.

An enclosure (enclosed area) used to contain domesticated animals, especially sheep or cattle.

To give (a woman) a fraternity pin in token of attachment.

(slang) Penitentiary, i.e. a state or federal prison for convicted felons.

Having a grain suggestive of the heads of pins. Used of leather.

(baseball) The bullpen.

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 tool, originally made from a feather but now usually a small tubular instrument, containing ink used to write or make marks.

A small nail with a head and a sharp point.

(figurative) A writer, or their style.

A cylinder often of wood or metal used to fasten or as a bearing between two parts.

(colloquial) Marks of ink left by a pen.

The victory condition of holding the opponent's shoulders on the wrestling mat for a prescribed period of time.

A light pen.

A slender object specially designed for use in a specific game or sport, such as skittles or bowling.

(zoology) The internal cartilage skeleton of a squid, shaped like a pen.

A leg.

A feather, especially one of the flight feathers of a bird, angel etc.

(electricity) Any of the individual connecting elements of a multipole electrical connector.

(poetic) A wing.

A piece of jewellery that is attached to clothing with a pin.

A female swan.

(US) A simple accessory that can be attached to clothing with a pin or fastener, often round and bearing a design, logo or message, and used for decoration, identification or to show political affiliation, etc.

Penalty.

(chess) Either a scenario in which moving a lesser piece to escape from attack would expose a more valuable piece to being taken instead, or one where moving a piece is impossible as it would place the king in check.

(transitive) To enclose in a pen.

(golf) The flagstick: the flag-bearing pole which marks the location of a hole

(transitive) To write (an article, a book, etc.).

(curling) The spot at the exact centre of the house (the target area)

A feather.

(archery) The spot at the exact centre of the target, originally a literal pin that fastened the target in place.

A wing.

(obsolete) A mood, a state of being.

An instrument used for writing with ink, formerly made of a reed, or of the quill of a goose or other bird, but now also of other materials, as of steel, gold, etc. Also, originally, a stylus or other instrument for scratching or graving.

One of a row of pegs in the side of an ancient drinking cup to mark how much each person should drink.

Fig.: A writer, or his style; as, he has a sharp pen.

Caligo.

The internal shell of a squid.

A thing of small value; a trifle.

A female swan; - contrasted with cob, the male swan.

A peg in musical instruments for increasing or relaxing the tension of the strings.

A small inclosure; as, a pen for sheep or for pigs.

(engineering) A short shaft, sometimes forming a bolt, a part of which serves as a journal.

A penitentiary[6]; a prison.

The tenon of a dovetail joint.

To write; to compose and commit to paper; to indite; to compose; as, to pen a sonnet.

A size of brewery cask, equal to half a firkin, or eighth of a barrel.

To shut up, as in a pen or cage; to confine in a small inclosure or narrow space; to coop up, or shut in; to inclose.

(informal) A pinball machine.

A writing implement with a point from which ink flows

(locksmithing) A small cylindrical object which blocks the rotation of a pin-tumbler lock when the incorrect key is inserted.

An enclosure for confining livestock

(often followed by a preposition such as "to" or "on") To fasten or attach (something) with a pin.

A portable enclosure in which babies may be left to play

To cause (a piece) to be in a pin.

A correctional institution for those convicted of major crimes

(wrestling) To pin down (someone).

Female swan

To enclose; to confine; to pen; to pound.

Produce a literary work;

To attach (an icon, application, message etc.) to another item so that it persists.

An instrument for writing or drawing with ink.

To fix (an array in memory, a security certificate, etc.) so that it cannot be modified.

A small enclosure for animals.

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A tool for digital input on touchscreens.

(transitive) To cause an analog gauge to reach the stop pin at the high end of the range.

To peen.

To inclose; to confine; to pen; to pound.

To fasten with, or as with, a pin; to join; as, to pin a garment; to pin boards together.

A piece of wood, metal, etc., generally cylindrical, used for fastening separate articles together, or as a support by which one article may be suspended from another; a peg; a bolt.

Especially, a small, pointed and headed piece of brass or other wire (commonly tinned), largely used for fastening clothes, attaching papers, etc.

Hence, a thing of small value; a trifle.

That which resembles a pin in its form or use

One of a row of pegs in the side of an ancient drinking cup to mark how much each man should drink.

The bull's eye, or center, of a target; hence, the center.

Mood; humor.

Caligo. See Caligo.

An ornament, as a brooch or badge, fastened to the clothing by a pin; as, a Masonic pin.

The leg; as, to knock one off his pins.

A piece of jewelry that is pinned onto the wearer's garment

When a wrestler's shoulders are forced to the mat

Small markers inserted into a surface to mark scores or define locations etc.

A number you choose and use to gain access to various accounts

Informal terms of the leg;

Axis consisting of a short shaft that supports something that turns

Cylindrical tumblers consisting of two parts that are held in place by springs; when they are aligned with a key the bolt can be thrown

Flagpole used to mark the position of the hole on a golf green

A small slender (often pointed) piece of wood or metal used to support or fasten or attach things

A holder attached to the gunwale of a boat that holds the oar in place and acts as a fulcrum for rowing

A club-shaped wooden object used in bowling; set up in groups as a target

To hold fast or prevent from moving;

Attach or fasten with pins

Pierce with a pin;

Immobilize a piece

A thin piece of metal with a sharp point used for fastening.

A peg or bolt for holding something in place.

A symbol in a map or diagram representing a location.

Some pens are disposable, while others are refillable or have replaceable cartridges.

A pen is commonly used for writing or drawing on paper.

Yes, pins are used as jewelry, such as brooches, and in fashion to secure clothing.

While often made of metal, pins can also be made of plastic or other materials.

A digital pen is an electronic device that captures handwriting or brush strokes on a touchscreen.

There are safety pins, straight pins, push pins, and decorative pins, among others.

Yes, 'pin' can be a verb meaning to secure with a pin or to hold someone or something down.

'Pin' comes from Old English 'pinn', which is of unknown origin.

There are fountain pens, ballpoint pens, rollerball pens, gel pens, and stylus pens.

In modern usage, a stylus can be referred to as a pen, especially if it's used for writing or drawing on digital devices.

Yes, 'pen' can also mean an enclosure for animals or an area in a prison.

A pin's primary use is for fastening or securing materials together.

Yes, a pen can symbolize writing or authorship, while a pin can symbolize attachment or craft.

Yes, 'pen' has a short "e" sound, while 'pin' has a short "i" sound, though in some accents they may sound similar.

'Pen' comes from the Latin word 'penna', meaning feather, reflecting its early form.