den

¹ American  

[den] / dɛn /

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.

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verb (used with object)

denned, denning

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

2. to kill (an animal) inside its den.

verb (used without object)

denned, denning

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

Den. ² American  

abbreviation

1. Denmark.

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den ¹ British  

/ 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

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verb

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

Den. ² British  

abbreviation

1. Denmark

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Etymology

Origin of den

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

Example Sentences

In mountainous areas, such as Big Bear, several rattlesnakes will live together in dens.

From Los Angeles Times

Meantime, Indiana is trying to bait the Bears to lumber over the state border and set up a den in the city of Hammond.

From The Wall Street Journal

“That’s Mrs. van den Keukel. Her brother came back from Indonesia with malaria and she’s been nursing him. Corrie,” as I sped back down the stairs, “ask her how Mrs. Rinker’s baby is!”

From Literature

Officials captured the female bear and her cubs, who were living in a den underneath a nearby home, on Sunday.

From Los Angeles Times

They’d also destroyed a wolf den on the other side of the gully.

From Literature

Related Words

• cave
• hotbed
• nest
• sanctuary