Link Centre Dictionary

den

US/ˈdɛn/ fairly common uk

noun

1.

the habitation of wild animals

Synonyms
2.

a hiding place; usually a remote place used by outlaws

Synonyms
3.

a unit of 8 to 10 cub scouts

4.

a room that is comfortable and secluded

Origin

From Middle English den, from Old English denn (“den, lair (of a beast), cave; a swine-pasture, a woodland pasture for swine”), from Proto-West Germanic *dani (“threshing-floor, barn-floor”). Cognate with Scots den (“den, lair”), Middle Dutch denne (“burrow, den, cave, attic”), Dutch den (“ship's deck, threshing-floor, mountain floor”), Middle Low German denne, danne (“threshing-floor, small dale”), German Tenne (“threshing-floor, barn for threshing”).

Phrases

  • beard the lion in his den
  • Boris's den
  • dealer's den
  • den mother
  • den of iniquity
  • dragon's den
  • drug den
  • gambling den

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.