as in marsh
spongy land saturated or partially covered with water a day spent trudging through the fens in quest of game birds

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fen Out in the wild, the queen-of-the-prairie grows in moist black soil prairies and meadows, fens, seeps and springs. Sheryl Devore, Chicago Tribune, 8 July 2025 Saving a satyr The property features a peat-bearing wetland called a fen, and the Mitchell’s satyr is only found in these rare habitats that take thousands of years to develop. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 31 Dec. 2024 Earth’s earliest wildfires may have been fitful and erratic, flickering among the amphibious flora of fens and bogs. Ferris Jabr, The Atlantic, 25 June 2024 They can be found on all continents and are classified into bogs, fens and swamps. Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Mar. 2024 But after decades of habitat destruction, these handsome insects are now fragmented and locally extinct, holding out in the wettest fens, valleys, and peat bogs of the New Forest and Dorset. Matthew Ponsford, WIRED, 19 Mar. 2024 The plants have been found in Indiana's forested wetlands, fens, savannas and forests as well as long roadsides and in old crop fields. The Indianapolis Star, 19 Mar. 2024 According to Indiana's Department of Natural Resources, wetlands include bogs, dune and swale, fens, flatwoods, floodplain forests, marshes, ponds, lakes, sedge meadows, seeps, streams, creeks, major rivers and swamps. Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 14 Feb. 2024 Traversing swamps, marshes, bogs, fens, bayous and baygalls across Georgia, Louisiana and his home of East Texas, Carter creates haunting photographs that invoke the imagination. Donny Bajohr, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Dec. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fen
Noun
  • The animatronic rabbits are outfitted with motors and internal heaters that are designed to replicate the behaviors and body temperatures of live marsh rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris), which Burmese pythons love to eat.
    Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 July 2025
  • Look for creamy white blooming and fragrant marsh Afrikaner (Gladiolus tristis), hot pink Byzantine gladiolus (Gladiolus byzantinus), pearl pink and magenta painted lady gladiolus (Gladiolus carneus) to start.
    Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 July 2025
Noun
  • This sanctuary consists of roughly 24 acres of wetlands, grasslands and forest.
    Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 14 July 2025
  • Clocking in at 3,200 square feet and surrounded by 1,100 acres of wetlands, grasses, and native prairie wildflowers, the almost-ranch-style house is distinctly boxy and sprawls across the property.
    AFAR Media, AFAR Media, 14 July 2025
Noun
  • Trump joked about the dangers of the swamp, the Florida GOP is selling hats and t-shirts bearing the facility’s name, and one of the president’s advisors implied that all U.S. Latinos should be fed to alligators.
    Time, Time, 17 July 2025
  • In the final stories of Mother to Men, Sodality reckons with the council’s refusal to deal with a swamp full of brackish water that is causing typhus: the council says that the expense outweighs any potential gain.
    Deborah Williams July 14, Literary Hub, 14 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Fen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fen. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.

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