keen: [OE] The ancestral meaning of keen is ‘brave’. That is what its German and Dutch relatives, kühn and koen, mean, and that is what keen itself meant in the Old English period. But this sense had died out by the 17th century, having been replaced by the meanings familiar today, such as ‘eager’ and ‘sharp’.
keen (adj.)
c. 1200, from Old English cene "bold brave," later "clever, wise," from Proto-Germanic *kan- "be able to" (see can). Original prehistoric senses seem to have been both "brave" and "skilled;" cognate with Old Norse kænn "skillful, wise," Middle Dutch coene "bold," Dutch koen, Old High German kuon "pugnacious, strong," German kühn "bold, daring." Sense of "eager" is from mid-14c. The meaning "sharp" is peculiar to English: of blades and edges early 13c., of sounds c. 1400, of eyesight c. 1720. A popular word of approval in teenager and student slang from c. 1900.
keen (v.)
"lament," 1811, from Irish caoinim "I weep, wail, lament," from Old Irish coinim "I wail." Related: Keened; keening. As a noun from 1830.
实用例句
1. He's been a keen supporter of the Labour Party all his life.
他一生都是工党的热情拥护者。
来自柯林斯例句
2. We were very keen when the 1954 Rally came round.
1954年的集会开始时，我们都非常热切。
来自柯林斯例句
3. He had retained a keen interest in the progress of the work.
他对那项工作的进展一直很关心。
来自柯林斯例句
4. The receivers are keen to sell the stores as one lot.
破产事务官想要将这些店铺打包整体出售。
来自柯林斯例句
5. Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.
