- the hidden home of some types of wild animal
- a bear’s/lion’s den
- (disapproving) a place where people meet in secret, especially for some illegal activity
- a den of thieves
- a drinking/gambling den
- He thought of New York as a den of iniquity.
- (North American English) a room in a house where people go to relax, watch television, etc.
- (British English, old-fashioned, informal) a room in a house where a person can work or study without being interrupted
- He would often retire to his den.
- a secret place, often made roughly with walls and a roof, where children play
- They made themselves a den in the woods.
- (North American English) a group of Cub Scouts
Word OriginOld English denn, of Germanic origin; related to German Tenne ‘threshing floor’, also to dene ‘vale’.
Idioms
See den in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarythe lion’s den
- a difficult situation in which you have to face a person or people who are unfriendly or aggressive towards you
to beard the lion in his den
- to go to see an important or powerful person to tell them that you disagree with them, that you want something, etc.Topics Opinion and argumentc2
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den