How to Use keen in a Sentence

keen

1 of 2 adjective
  • She's a very keen observer of the political world.
  • Hartwell was not keen on the idea.
    — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Jesus, though, is keen to clear one thing up.
    — Mario Cortegana, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
  • No one was that keen on putting me forward to do it.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Jan. 2026
  • This stretch has shown that Booth had a keen eye as a scout.
    — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 15 Jan. 2026
  • Still, some jurors have not seemed keen to stay for too long.
    — New York Times, 2 Dec. 2020
  • But not every on-premise is keen on adding non-alcs to menus.
    — Kate Dingwall, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2021
  • Michael is a fun boy who has a unique, yet keen sense of humor.
    — Boys & Girls Aid / Community Content Partner, OregonLive.com, 8 June 2018
  • Be safe and keep a keen eye out for things other than rocks and trunks.
    — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2026
  • The owners are keen to make this a place for art, late nights, and fun.
    — Joanne Shurvell, Forbes, 31 Dec. 2022
  • But plenty of buyers are keen to find out.
    — Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2025
  • The club is keen to make an appointment soon.
    — Roshane Thomas, New York Times, 28 May 2026
  • Both share a deep passion for food and a keen eye for design.
    — New York Times, 28 Apr. 2022
  • Gift that keen sense of cool with this lovely pair from Walden.
    — Mark Stock, Men's Health, 16 Nov. 2022
  • Buildings around the world are keen to get that seal of approval.
    — Adrienne Bernhard, Smithsonian, 27 Apr. 2018
  • His lawyers might not be so keen on that idea, however.
    — Michael Schneider, Variety, 27 May 2026
  • Sotheby’s is, of course, very keen on next year’s sales, and this year’s, too.
    — Washington Post, 1 June 2021
  • Walleye then use their keen low-light vision to pick off their prey.
    — Jordan Rodriguez, idahostatesman, 19 Mar. 2018
  • So, parents weren't too keen on being charged for the face masks.
    — Paul Best, Fox News, 25 Nov. 2020
  • Investors seem keen on that outlook.
    — Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 11 Mar. 2026
  • Buttigieg served in one of those wars and has been keen on reminding us about it.
    — Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 30 Oct. 2019
  • Still, Green, a keen and steely talent, puts them — and us — through hell.
    — Amy Nicholson, Variety, 16 Sep. 2023
  • Payne is keen to open up the AI field, which many say is rife with bias.
    — Jenny Anderson, Quartz, 4 Sep. 2019
  • Diane had a keen eye for style and was known for her elegance.
    — sun-sentinel.com, 19 Nov. 2019
  • Elton John has always had a keen eye for things that sparkle.
    — Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 16 Sep. 2025
  • The keen scent of the fall breeze with its hint of snow now swept down the valley and stung our faces.
    — Anton Money, Outdoor Life, 4 June 2026
  • Seth balanced a strong sense of service with a keen sense of humor.
    — courant.com, 1 Dec. 2019
  • Linda, on the other hand, is still not so keen on going home.
    — Megan McCluskey, Time, 30 Jan. 2026
  • One step inside the house reveals the Lewis’ keen eye for style.
    — Sarah Cook, al, 2 Nov. 2019
  • Still, both founders are keen to stress what the technology is not.
    — Justin Fenner, Robb Report, 29 Sep. 2025

keen

2 of 2 verb
  • Dozens swooned, cried, keened and passed out from the heat outside the mansion gates.
    — Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 16 Aug. 2017
  • They would all be overcome by such melancholy that someone would begin to cry and keen.
    — Olga Tokarczuk, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2021
  • His first albums, built on country blues foundations, shook with dexterous picking and a voice that keened and yipped and roared.
    — Brendan Fitzgerald, Longreads, 10 Aug. 2020
  • Unlike beams of tinnitus, these keening, distortionlike sounds were a sign of healthy ears.
    — Seth Colter Walls, New York Times, 19 May 2017
  • Speakers beneath the floor rumble with thunderous sounds of glaciers calving, like a keening mammoth.
    — Cate McQuaid, BostonGlobe.com, 9 May 2018
  • The sparse soundtrack is made up of silence and female voices keening, singing and shrieking, a deeply unpleasant sonic quilt.
    — Los Angeles Times, 1 Aug. 2019
  • The courtyard bustled with activity, the women keen to get out of their tiny dormitories.
    — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 14 June 2018
  • That’s also the idea with Ogilala, in which Corgan’s keening take-it-or-leave-it voice is often paired with piano and a string section.
    — Dan Deluca, Philly.com, 12 Oct. 2017
  • Taken together, these two long poems, as well as two odes to nature that follow them, represent a powerful act of keening for a falling world.
    — Craig Morgan Teicher, latimes.com, 9 Mar. 2018
  • Dani discovers Christian in flagrante and finally lets out her howling grief, surrounded by a half-dozen girls who match her keening with their own.
    — Alissa Wilkinson, Vox, 3 July 2019
  • Kid zombies maraud the local gas station for candy while adults wander outside the pharmacy listlessly keening for Xanax.
    — Katie Walsh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2019
  • The Dogman had a clear memory of the event because Sudimack had called him from a gas station outside Allentown to keen over the loss of his future.
    — Michael Deagler, Harper's Magazine, 27 Oct. 2020
  • But Americans don't seem to keen on the idea, according to a Pew Research Center survey released earlier this year.
    — Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 23 May 2026
  • That certainly applied in Von Freeman’s case, his keening tone and sometimes ever-so-slightly-flat pitch distinguishing him from anyone who ever brought reed to lips.
    — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 22 Sep. 2019
  • The fiddle keens and runs of band member Daniel Foulks — sometimes country-raw, sometimes virtuosic, sometimes psychedelic — make a mighty contribution as well.
    — Stuart Munro, BostonGlobe.com, 18 May 2018
  • The past few years have brought folksy screeching, glacial silences, drawling speech, powdery bleakness and spiritual solemnity; last year, a keening Ethiopian folk song was tricked out with an avant-garde mixture of yelps, croaks and hums.
    — Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2017
  • Kwon moves fluidly from intimate memories of being a Korean American in Los Angeles to keen social critique, touching on body-shaming, mental health, the weight of Korea’s history, and the nuances of diaspora.
    — Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 30 June 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'keen.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: