Definition of dense
denser
;densest
1a : marked by compactness or crowding together of parts dense vegetation dense trafficb chemistry : having a high mass (see 2mass 1c) per unit volume (see 1volume 2) Carbon dioxide is a dense gas. The cake was overly sweet and dense.
2a : slow to understand : stupid, thickheaded was too dense to get the jokeb : extreme dense ignorance
3 mathematics : having between any two elements at least one element The set of rational numbers is dense.
4 : demanding concentration to follow or comprehend dense prose
5 : having high or relatively high opacity (see opacity 2) a dense fog a dense photographic negative
densely
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Examples of dense in a Sentence
They cut a path through the dense jungle.
a dense tangle of wires
a dense cluster of stars
That part of the city has a dense population of immigrants.
A dense mass of spectators filled the courtroom.
In the movie, she plays his kind but somewhat dense aunt.
Recent Examples of dense from the Web
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In a 2014 study, Dinets describes mugger crocodiles in Sri Lanka swimming in increasingly tighter circles around fish, then take turns darting through the dense schools to catch their lunch.
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Twenty-year-old Michael Doherty, of Franklin, was found dead last month in dense woods and thick underbrush near Interstate 495.
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While a certain amount of technicality is to be expected from a financial report, the communications from the Bank of England had simply become far too dense to understand – even for those who work in the field of economics.
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Growing in dense stands, roseau also builds land by trapping sediment flowing through the river.
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Those fruits and vegetables are some of the most nutrient-dense food available.
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Carrot coconut cake Serves 4 There’s not much of a rise in this cake, but its texture does approximate that of a baked carrot cake with a moist, dense crumb.
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Iraq’s conventional military has focused on clearing the city itself, a slow, grinding process in dense urban terrain packed with tens of thousands of civilians.
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By the time the dense fog lifts from California’s Salinas Valley, the crew has cut enough cauliflower to fill a dozen produce aisle bins at a local grocery store.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dense'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of dense
Latin densus; akin to Greek dasys thick with hair or leaves
First Known Use: 15th century
Synonym Discussion of dense
DENSE Defined for English Language Learners
dense
playDefinition of dense for English Language Learners
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: having parts that are close together
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: crowded with people
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: not smart : not able to understand things easily
DENSE Defined for Kids
Learn More about dense
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See words that rhyme with dense Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for dense Spanish Central: Translation of dense Nglish: Translation of dense for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of dense for Arabic speakers
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