Meaning

noun a funeral lament sung with loud wailing

verb express grief verbally

adjective having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions

originFrom Middle English kene (“bold, brave, sharp”), from Old English cēne (“keen, fierce, bold, brave, warlike, powerful; learned, clever, wise”), from Proto-Germanic *kōniz (“knowledgeable, skilful, experienced, clever, capable”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know”). Cognate with Danish køn (“handsome, pretty”), Dutch kien (“smart, wise, able”), koen (“daring, valiant, doughty,…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0