quill pen
2
8.1
- noun
- /kwɪl pɛn/
- Archaic
:
pluma de ave
- He carefully dipped the quill pen into the ink before writing his letter.
- ink for quill pen
- write with a quill pen
- quill pen in hand
Examples
-
She is writing in a diary with a quill pen in an adult hand.
Fiction book (1994) -
Mrs. Ladelle stood and crossed to a secretary who had a feather duster lying on the green blotter and a quill pen sticking from a brass ink pot.
Fiction book (1999) -
Me thinks me needs a quill pen and book.
-
I tried on my own to draw the letters of the alphabet with a quill pen.
Fiction book (1997) -
A quill pen lay on the carpet, crushed.
Fiction book (1999) -
A small man in a business suit sat next to her, a notepad in front of him, a quill pen in his hand.
Fiction book (1998) -
They write with quill pens.
Fiction book (1995) -
WW is sitting at Little Bill's desk, writing furiously with a quill pen.
Fiction book (1993) -
Then came the moment to sign it, and the initial hesitation by all was followed by silence as each man stepped forward and picked up the quill pen.
Fiction book (1994) -
"Come, sign the book," Clieous directed, pulling Casimir to the lectern and setting the quill pen in his hand.
Fiction book (1992)
Synonyms
508
1.0
A tool for writing with ink
11
8.7
A pen made from a bird's feather used for writing in the past
A hollow reed or quill used like a pen in ancient times
How Old-fashioned
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound meaning is directly compositional: a 'quill pen' is simply a pen made from a quill (a bird feather). Because both constituent meanings (quill and pen) map straightforwardly onto the compound and the concept exists cross-linguistically, a B1 learner who knows the two words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The noun quill pen comes from a real writing tool made from a bird's feather: the stiff, hollow part of a quill was used as a pen and dipped into ink to write. So, the name now means 'a pen made from a bird's feather' that people used before metal pens.