Etymograph

English

keen

Keen comes from Middle English kene ‘bold, brave, sharp’, from Proto-Germanic *kōniz ‘knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever,…’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to know’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-1‘to know’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kōniz1‘knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150cēne1‘keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500kene1‘bold, brave, sharp’
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1595–1596keen1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English keen
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1595–1596, William Shakespeare, Loues Labour’s Lost: “The tongues of mocking wenches are as keen As…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-Wiktionary, English keen‘to know’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kōnizWiktionary, English keen‘knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150cēneWiktionary, English keen‘keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500keneWiktionary, English keen‘bold, brave, sharp’
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1595–1596keenWiktionary, English keen. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1595–1596, William Shakespeare, Loues Labour’s Lost: “The tongues of mocking wenches are as keen As…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to know’

can, know, could, note, normal, notice, recognize, ignore, recognition, narrative, glory, con, noble, notion, cognitive, ignorant, norm, diagnostic, notorious, notation, nobility, cunning, cognition, prognosis, narration, quaint, ken, gnome, notoriety, notary, incognito, agnostic, canny, connoisseur, uncouth, canna, kith, gnosis, annotate, recognizance, 91 more

Another origin of keen

  1. Old Irishc. 600–900coínid‘to lament, mourn, keen’
  2. Middle Irishc. 900–1200caínid
  3. Irishc. 1200–presentcaoin‘to lament, keen’
  4. Englishtodaykeen

Today it means

adj Often with a prepositional phrase, or with to and an infinitive: showing a quick and ardent responsiveness or willingness; eager, enthusiastic, interested.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “keen”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- / keen

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