dungeon
Americannoun
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a strong, dark prison or cell, usually underground, as in a medieval castle.
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the keep or stronghold of a castle; donjon.
noun
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a close prison cell, often underground
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a variant of donjon
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dungeon
1250–1300; Middle English dungeo ( u ) n, dongeoun, dungun < Middle French donjon < Vulgar Latin *domniōn- (stem of *domniō ) keep, mastery, syncopated variant of *dominiōn- dominion
Explanation
That dank, stone-walled underground prison where wretched prisoners were kept manacled in medieval days? That was a dungeon, otherwise known as the "keep," and most familiar to us today from a million video games and movies. In fact, the original meaning of dungeon was of something overground rather than underground, coming from the Old French term donjon, meaning the "great tower of a castle," and the underground meaning only came later. Rapunzel in the fairy tale was held captive in a tower rather than an underground cell and if she hadn't been, her long hair wouldn't have been much help in her escape.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” begins with “As You Lie There,” his fond remembrances about a schoolboy crush.
From Salon • May 12, 2026
The pair recently collaborated on a duet for McCartney's forthcoming album, The Boys Of Dungeon Lane, which is out next month.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
The Boys Of Dungeon Lane was inspired by his childhood in post-war Liverpool, and named after a road in Speke that leads to the Mersey shore, where the young McCartney would spend afternoons bird-watching.
From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026
They then removed AI Dungeon from the platform.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026
Because at that moment, as I turned to go down the hall toward the Dungeon of Deadly Dullness that I was sure awaited me in Room 130 of that school, I was overfilled with misery.
From "Ida B" by Katherine Hannigan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
