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definitions

denizen

[den-uh-zuh n]
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noun

an inhabitant; resident.
a person who regularly frequents a place; habitué: the denizens of a local bar.
British. an alien admitted to residence and to certain rights of citizenship in a country.
anything adapted to a new place, condition, etc., as an animal or plant not indigenous to a place but successfully naturalized.

verb (used with object)

to make a denizen of.

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RELATED WORDS

inhabitant, occupant, dweller, national, habitant, native, citizen, subject, liver, indweller, inhabiter, resider

Nearby words

  1. denise,
  2. denison,
  3. denitrate,
  4. denitrification,
  5. denitrify,
  6. denmark,
  7. denmark strait,
  8. dennie's line,
  9. denning,
  10. dennis

Origin of denizen

1425–75; late Middle English denisein < Anglo-French, equivalent to deinz within (Old French; see dedans) + -ein -an
Related formsden·i·za·tion, den·i·zen·a·tion, nounden·i·zen·ship, nounun·den·i·zened, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for denizen

British Dictionary definitions for denizen

denizen

noun

an inhabitant; occupant; resident
British an individual permanently resident in a foreign country where he enjoys certain rights of citizenship
a plant or animal established in a place to which it is not native
a naturalized foreign word

verb

(tr) to make a denizen

Word Origin for denizen

C15: from Anglo-French denisein, from Old French denzein, from denz within, from Latin de intus from within
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for denizen
n.

early 15c., from Anglo-French deinzein, from deinz "within, inside," from Late Latin deintus, from de- "from" + intus "within" (see ento-). Historically, an alien admitted to certain rights of citizenship; a naturalized citizen.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper