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jungle

[ juhng-guh l ]
/ ˈdʒʌŋ gəl /
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noun

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RELATED WORDS

wasteland, wood, forest, web, undergrowth, labyrinth, zoo, bush, maze, tangle, morass, chaparral, boscage

Nearby words

jung, carl gustav, jungfrau, junggar pendi, junggrammatiker, jungian, jungle, jungle books, the, jungle bunny, jungle cock, jungle fever, jungle fowl

Origin of jungle

1770–80; < Hindi jaṅgal < Pali, Prakrit jaṅgala rough, waterless place
Related formsjun·gled, adjectiveun·der·jun·gle, noun

Definition for jungle (2 of 2)

Jungle, The

noun

a novel (1906) by Upton Sinclair.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for jungle

British Dictionary definitions for jungle

jungle

/ (ˈdʒʌŋɡəl) /

noun

an equatorial forest area with luxuriant vegetation, often almost impenetrable
any dense or tangled thicket or growth
a place of intense competition or ruthless struggle for survivalthe concrete jungle
a type of fast electronic dance music, originating in the early 1990s, which combines elements of techno and ragga
US slang (esp in the Depression) a gathering place for the unemployed, etc
Derived Formsjungly, adjective

Word Origin for jungle

C18: from Hindi jangal, from Sanskrit jāngala wilderness
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 jungle

jungle

n.

1776, from Hindi jangal "desert, forest, wasteland, uncultivated ground," from Sanskrit jangala-s "arid, sparsely grown with trees," of unknown origin. Specific sense of "land overgrown by vegetation in a wild, tangled mass" is first recorded 1849; meaning "place notoriously lawless and violent" is first recorded 1906, from Upton Sinclair's novel (cf. asphalt jungle, 1949, William R. Burnett's novel title, made into a film 1950 by John Huston; blackboard jungle, 1954, Evan Hunter's novel title, movie in 1955). Jungle gym was a trademark name, 1923, by Junglegym Inc., Chicago, U.S. Jungle bunny, derogatory for "black person," attested from 1966.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with jungle

jungle

see law of the jungle.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.