dense

adjective \ ˈden(t)s \

|Updated on: 7 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: dense in a Sentence

Definition of dense

denser; densest

1 a : marked by compactness or crowding together of parts

dense vegetation

dense traffic

b 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.

2 a : slow to understand : stupid, thickheaded

was too dense to get the joke

b : 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

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densely

adverb

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denseness

play \ˈden(t)-snəs\ noun

See dense defined for English-language learners

See dense defined for kids

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

The narrative is dense, but the author did an excellent job guiding me through it.

— swapna krishna, latimes.com, "Revenge is a dish best served with AI and unicorns: 3 sci-fi reads," 31 May 2018
Tuesday will start off with mostly cloudy skies across the state along with patchy fog that could be very dense along the shoreline.

— gary lessor, courant.com, "Tornado, Hail Possible Tuesday," 14 May 2018
Even so, Europa’s eruptions could be equally as dense as its cousin’s, and easily visible by an orbiting spacecraft.

— National Geographic, "Water Geysers Likely Found on This 'Alien' Ice Moon," 14 May 2018
The idea is that dark matter particles might be observed interacting with ordinary matter, if the ordinary matter is dense enough.

— dan falk /, NBC News, "What is dark matter?," 7 May 2018
The rulebooks of various sports are as dense, convoluted and impenetrable as your ordinary astrophysics textbook.

— chris chase, For The Win, "13 incredibly bizarre rules in sports from dress codes to one-point safeties," 11 Apr. 2018
The jungles were so dense that the last Japanese soldier who fled to the island's interior during World War II didn't emerge until 1972.

— USA TODAY, "Priest accused in 124 Guam sex abuse cases ages quietly, alone," 5 May 2018
Because the early universe was quite dense, the galaxies that managed to form would be packed with stars, 10 times denser than galaxies such as our Milky Way.

— adam mann, Science | AAAS, "Dark energy’s weakness may be why supernovae didn’t kill us all," 4 May 2018
Her lyrics are as intellectually dense as that diploma would suggest, combining Pavement’s love of abstraction, the taunting confidence of rap, and a feminist consciousness that grows more explicit with each album.

— terence cawley, BostonGlobe.com, "Speedy Ortiz headier, poppier than ever on ‘Twerp Verse’," 25 Apr. 2018

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

dense Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of dense

stupid, dull, dense, crass, dumb mean lacking in power to absorb ideas or impressions. stupid implies a slow-witted or dazed state of mind that may be either congenital or temporary.

- stupid students just keeping the seats warm
- stupid with drink

dull suggests a slow or sluggish mind such as results from disease, depression, or shock.

- monotonous work that leaves the mind dull

dense implies a thickheaded imperviousness to ideas.

- too dense to take a hint

crass suggests a grossness of mind precluding discrimination or delicacy.

- a crass, materialistic people

dumb applies to an exasperating obtuseness or lack of comprehension.

- too dumb to figure out what's going on

DENSE Defined for English Language Learners

dense

adjective

Definition of dense for English Language Learners

: having parts that are close together
: crowded with people
: not smart : not able to understand things easily

DENSE Defined for Kids

dense

adjective \ ˈdens \

Definition of dense for Students

denser; densest

1 : having its parts crowded together : thick

dense vegetation

dense fog

2 : stupid 1

I'm not dense enough to believe this story.

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densely

adverb

a densely populated region

Synonym Discussion of dense

dense, thick, and compact mean having parts that are gathered tightly together. dense is used of something in which the parts are very close together.