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Glite Dictionary
pen nib

pen nib

4.1
The small pointed metal tip of a pen that puts ink on paper
  • noun
  • /pɛn nɪb/
translation icon : punta de pluma
  • After writing for a while, the pen nib started to produce thinner lines than usual.

Examples

  • And that's why I am kind of cleaning up the pen nib on a scrap piece of paper here, taking more of the excess paint off.

  • The pen nib would go right through the paper.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • I also thought maybe it had to do with how used my pen nib is (7 years), but if you have an Intuos 4 with a new nib ...

    Blog text (8)

  • Try removing your pen nib and pushing it back; it might get stuck or not be properly inserted, resulting in a small trail at the end of strokes (which looks like you lifted the pen from the surface, but the nib still keeps pushing the pressure sensor for a moment).

    Blog text (8)

  • The artist carefully adjusted the pen nib to achieve precise lines in her drawing.

  • He replaced the worn pen nib to ensure smooth writing on the new paper.

Synonyms

nib
vspen nib
5 7.2

A pointed metal tip at the end of a pen that puts ink on paper

is the metal tip that applies ink to a surface when writing

How Precise

pen nib
4.1
fountain pen
8 3.1
pen
508 1.0
marker
57 1.1

Surface Forms

pen nib singular
pen nibs plural

Morphology

pen + nib

The meaning is directly and literally derived from its constituents: 'pen' (writing instrument) + 'nib' (the pointed end). This noun+noun compositional pattern transparently refers to the pointed tip of a pen and is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words will understand it.

Etymology

The noun pen nib names the small pointed tip at the end of a pen. The nib is like a tiny metal 'beak' that picks up ink and lays it on paper, so pen nib means the sharp metal part used 'to write'.