English Explanatory Dictionary

den

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A small cavern or hollow place in the side of a hill, or among rocks; especially, a cave used by a wild animal for shelter or concealment.
  2. A squalid or wretched place; a haunt.
  3. A comfortable room not used for formal entertaining.
  4. Synonym of fort (“structure improvised from furniture, etc. for playing games.”).
  5. A narrow glen; a ravine; a dell.
  6. A group of Cub Scouts of the same age who work on projects together.
verb
  1. To ensconce or hide oneself in (or as in) a den.
  2. Of an animal, to use as a den; to take up residence in.
noun
  1. Abbreviation of denier (a unit of weight).
noun
  1. Alternative form of dene.
adv
  1. Pronunciation spelling of then, representing AAVE, Bermuda English.
name
  1. A diminutive of the male given name Dennis.
name
  1. Abbreviation of Denver.

Pronunciation

/ˈdɛn/ en-us-den.ogg /ˈdɪ̟n/

Word forms

den dens denning denned

Etymology

From Middle English den, from Old English denn (“den, lair (of a beast), cave; a swine-pasture, a woodland pasture for swine”), from Proto-West Germanic *dani (“threshing-floor, barn-floor”). Cognate with Scots den (“den, lair”), Middle Dutch denne (“burrow, den, cave, attic”), Dutch den (“ship's deck, threshing-floor, mountain floor”), Middle Low German denne, danne (“threshing-floor, small dale”), German Tenne (“threshing-floor, barn for threshing”).

Synonyms

lair luster Wiktionary appendix of animal terms, including their homes family room sunroom Florida room Arizona room rec room playroom fort

Related words

good-den

Derived words

beard the lion in his den Boris's den dealer's den denful denlike den mother denner den of iniquity dragon's den drug den gambling den lion's den Maggie's den Major's den opium den Tony's den Walsden
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