den

¹

[ den ]

noun

1. the lair or shelter of a wild animal, especially a predatory mammal.
2. a room, often secluded, in a house or apartment, designed to provide a quiet, comfortable, and informal atmosphere for conversation, reading, writing, etc.
3. a cave used as a place of shelter or concealment.
4. a squalid or vile abode or place:

   dens of misery.

5. one of the units of a cub scout pack, analogous to a patrol in the Boy Scouts.

verb (used with object)

, denned, den·ning.

1. to drive or pursue (an animal) into its den.
2. to kill (an animal) inside its den.

verb (used without object)

, denned, den·ning.

1. to live in or as if in a den.

Den.

²

abbreviation for

1. Denmark.

Den.

¹

abbreviation for

1. Denmark

den

²

/ dɛn /

noun

1. the habitat or retreat of a lion or similar wild animal; lair
2. a small or secluded room in a home, often used for carrying on a hobby
3. a squalid or wretched room or retreat
4. a site or haunt

   a den of vice

5. a small wooded valley; dingle
6. dialect.
   a place of sanctuary in certain catching games; home or base

verb

1. intr to live in or as if in a den

Word History and Origins

Origin of den¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English denn; compare early Dutch denne floor, cave, den, German Tenne floor

Word History and Origins

Origin of den¹

Old English denn; related to Old High German tenni threshing floor, early Dutch denne low ground, den, cave

Example Sentences

Previous keeper Leo op den Brouw, 70, had spent every second month alone on the island for the past 25 years.

From BBC

She needs to go into the lion’s den — similar to going on Fox News — and prove that she’s strong and unintimidated.

From Salon

She’s had employees quit because they didn’t feel safe in the neighborhood, or commuting through the nearby Westlake/MacArthur Park Metro station, which has often served as a drug den.

From Los Angeles Times

He told the programme that coming back to the prison was “like taking someone out of rehab and putting them in a drug den”.

From BBC

"So you're sending them into the lion's den essentially - day after day after day."

From BBC

Related Words

• cave
• hotbed
• nest
• sanctuary