dense

American  

[dens] / dɛns /

adjective

denser, densest

1. having the component parts closely compacted together; crowded or compact.

   a dense forest;

   dense population.

   Synonyms:

   impenetrable, teeming

2. stupid; slow-witted; dull.

3. intense; extreme.

   dense ignorance.

4. relatively opaque; transmitting little light, as a photographic negative, optical glass, or color.

5. difficult to understand or follow because of being closely packed with ideas or complexities of style.

   a dense philosophical essay.

6. Mathematics. of or relating to a subset of a topological space in which every neighborhood of every point in the space contains at least one point of the subset.

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dense British  

/ dɛns /

adjective

1. thickly crowded or closely set

   a dense crowd

2. thick; impenetrable

   a dense fog

3. physics having a high density

4. stupid; dull; obtuse

5. (of a photographic negative) having many dark or exposed areas

6. (of an optical glass, colour, etc) transmitting little or no light

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Other Word Forms

• densely adverb
• denseness noun
• nondenseness noun
• superdense adjective
• ultradense adjective

Etymology

Origin of dense

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin dēnsus “thick”; cognate with Greek dasýs

Example Sentences

But here in Southern California, something more is in the air: a dense, motionless tsunami of something foul and inexplicable.

From Los Angeles Times

He said the discovery sparked a huge and "challenging" forensic search in an area of "dense undergrowth".

From BBC

Artificial intelligence is becoming a vital utility for anyone analyzing dense securities filings, making quick work of once-impenetrable tomes.

From The Wall Street Journal

In response to criticism of the provision’s effectiveness, Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky introduced a motion to expand its incentives so developers actually build the newly legalized housing types, potentially allowing for higher, denser projects.

From Los Angeles Times

Roughly 13.8 billion years ago, the universe began from an infinitely hot and dense single point, then expanded and stretched — otherwise known as the Big Bang Theory.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• heavy
• impenetrable
• opaque
• solid