population density

[ pop-yuh-ley-shuhn den-si-tee ]

noun

, plural pop·u·la·tion den·si·ties.

1. the number of people, or members of a particular plant or animal species, living in a specified unit of area: a measure of how crowded or spread out inhabitants are:

   At the time of this research, the city had a population density of 537 persons per square mile.

   Our free-range chickens are raised without antibiotics and in low population densities, with plenty of room to roam around.

Word History and Origins

Origin of population density¹

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

So comparing those lines to the experience in a rich suburb with low population density seems more than a tad unfair.

From The Daily Beast

As many as five adults have been caught in a trap simultaneously at times when the population density was high.

From Project Gutenberg

Other things being equal, cannibalism involving the young might be expected to be greater at times of high population density.

From Project Gutenberg

This indicates that the population density from 1967 to 1969 may have been higher than from 1948 to 1953.

From Project Gutenberg

The population density of the Union is 25.6 to the square mile.

From Project Gutenberg

Our population density is fifteen hundred to the square mile.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• anthropology