fen

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a low, waterlogged wetland fed by groundwater or runoff, often peat-forming and richer in minerals than a bog

   Reeds and sedges covered the alkaline fen beside the river.

2. 2
   noun

   a Chinese monetary unit equal to one hundredth of a yuan

   The historical price list recorded the smallest charge in fen.

The wetland noun descends from Old English fenn, 'marsh, mud,' from a Germanic word for boggy ground. The unrelated currency noun is borrowed from Mandarin fen, 'division or hundredth,' and names one hundredth of a yuan.

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