Word forms: comparative denser, superlative densest
1. adjective
Something that is dense contains a lot of things or people in a small area.
Where Bucharest now stands, there once was a large, dense forest.
Its fur is short, dense and silky.
They thrust their way through the dense crowd.
denselyadverb [usually ADVERB -ed]
Java is a densely populated island.
The fire struck a densely wooded area of Oakland.
2. adjective
Dense fog or smoke is difficult to see through because it is very heavy and dark.
A dense column of smoke rose several miles into the air.
3. adjective
In science, a dense substance is very heavy in relation to its volume.
[technical]
...a small dense star.
4. graded adjective
If you describe writing or a film as dense, you mean that it is difficult to understand because it contains a lot of information and ideas.
[disapproval]
His prose is vigorous and dense, occasionally to the point of obscurity.
Synonyms: obscure, deep, complex, profound More Synonyms of dense
5. adjective [verb-link ADJECTIVE]
If you say that someone is dense, you mean that you think they are stupid and that they take a long time to understand simple things.
[informal]
He's not a bad man, just a bit dense.
Synonyms: stupid [informal], slow, thick, dull More Synonyms of dense
More Synonyms of dense
dense in British English
(dɛns)
adjective
1.
thickly crowded or closely set
a dense crowd
2.
thick; impenetrable
a dense fog
3. physics
having a high density
4.
stupid; dull; obtuse
5.
(of a photographic negative) having many dark or exposed areas
6.
(of an optical glass, colour, etc) transmitting little or no light
Derived forms
densely (ˈdensely)
adverb
denseness (ˈdenseness)
noun
Word origin
C15: from Latin densus thick; related to Greek dasus thickly covered with hair or leaves
dense in American English
(dɛns)
adjectiveWord forms: ˈdenser or ˈdensest
1.
having the parts crowded together; packed tightly together; compact
2.
difficult to get through, penetrate, etc.
a dense fog, dense ignorance
3.
slow to understand; stupid
4. Photography
opaque due to a heavy concentration of metallic silver
said of an overexposed or overdeveloped negative
SIMILAR WORDS: close, ˈstupid
Derived forms
densely (ˈdensely)
adverb
denseness (ˈdenseness)
noun
Word origin
ME < L densus, compact < IE base *dens-, thick > Gr dasys, thick (used of hair), Hittite dassuš, strong
Examples of 'dense' in a sentence
dense
The fog may be dense and widespread enough to cause disruption.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
The icy conditions and thick dense mist could bring delays and disruption around the country during rush hour.
The Sun (2017)
That morning, a dense fog hung over the battlefield.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Visitors will be hunted and chased through the Park's dense forest.
The Sun (2016)
Real jade is dense and feels heavy for its size.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The air was dense with chemical foam.
Oxenhorn, Harvey Tuning the Rig: A Journey to the Arctic (1990)
The sun was rising through a dense fog of dust.
The Times Literary Supplement (2010)
It is verdant and peaceful and has spectacular landscapes covered in dense pine forests and olive groves.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
These tulips will spread gradually and reliably to form dense patches of small starry flowers.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The air is less dense up there than it is down here.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The following day found the ship in heavy seas and dense fog.
Eaton, John P & Haas, Charles A Titanic - Destination disaster (1987)
But it is the small dense ones that cause the real damage.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
As a vegetarian she had been shocked to see a dense forest of cured hams hanging upside down from the ceiling.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
The air is dense with pollution.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
We said goodbye and hurried off through the dense, happy crowds.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
A dense plume of smoke rose as ambulances and fire engines raced through the narrow streets.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Mix together with as few stirs as possible - mixing too much will make the muffins too dense and heavy.
The Sun (2013)
No one was more aware of the risks involved in driving horses in the heart of London amid crowds and dense traffic.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
The searing heat and dense, acrid smoke inside a burning building make it almost impossible for firefighters to see what is around them.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
She returned to the cart, which moved slowly through the dense crowd of people who had assembled to see her go to the scaffold.
Deborah Cadbury THE LOST KING OF FRANCE: Revolution, Revenge and the Search for Louis XVII (2002)
The cobbler, by contrast, stayed dense and tasted dull against the cod.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Thick, quite dense, not overly sweet and filling.
The Sun (2016)
The small needles link together to form a dense, dark backdrop that remains smart throughout the year and provides a perfect foil for more riotous planting.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
All the booze will be cooked out during baking and the result should be a dark, dense but very moist cake with a fantastically moreish flavour.
The Sun (2016)
But as in other kinds of writing about science, it is generally better to be overly clear than dense, and difficult to understand.
Porush, David A Short Guide to Writing About Science (1995)
Sport was a bit dense; I would have dropped in a fact box to lighten up the pages.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
I found it a bit too dense, and didn't like the way all the units overlook each other.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
In other languages
dense
British English: dense /dɛns/ ADJECTIVE
Something that is dense contains a lot of things or people in relation to its size.
...a dense forest.
American English: dense
Arabic: كَثِيف
Brazilian Portuguese: denso
Chinese: 稠密的
Croatian: gust
Czech: hustý
Danish: tæt
Dutch: compact
European Spanish: denso vegetación
Finnish: tiheä
French: dense
German: dicht gedrängt
Greek: πυκνός
Italian: denso
Japanese: 密集した
Korean: 밀집한
Norwegian: ugjennomtrengelig
Polish: gęsty
European Portuguese: denso
Romanian: des
Russian: густой
Latin American Spanish: espeso
Swedish: tät
Thai: หนาแน่น
Turkish: sık orman
Ukrainian: густий
Vietnamese: đậm đặc
Chinese translation of 'dense'
dense
(dɛns)
adj
[crowd, forest]稠密的 (chóumì de)
[smoke, fog]浓(濃)厚的 (nónghòu de)
(inf, = stupid) 愚钝(鈍)的 (yúdùn de)
1 (adjective)
Definition
thickly crowded or closely packed
a large, dense forest
Synonyms
thick
He folded his thick arms across his chest.
close
Three bombers flew overhead in close formation.
heavy
There was a heavy amount of traffic on the roads.
solid
a tunnel carved through 50ft of solid rock
substantial
compact
a thick, bare trunk crowned by a compact mass of dark-green leaves
compressed
condensed
impenetrable
close-knit
thickset
Opposites
light
,
thin
,
scattered
,
transparent
,
sparse
2 (adjective)
Definition
difficult to see through
a dense column of smoke
Synonyms
heavy
Put the sugar and water in a heavy pan and heat slowly.
thick
The smoke was blueish-black and thick.
substantial
opaque
the opaque language of the official report
impenetrable
The range forms an impenetrable barrier between Europe and Asia.
smoggy
3 (adjective)
Definition
(of a film, book, etc.) difficult to follow or understand
His prose is wordy and dense.
Synonyms
obscure
The contract is written in obscure language.
deep
a deep, dark secret
complex
profound
a book full of profound and challenging insights
abstract
starting with a few abstract principles
enigmatic
She starred in one of Welles's most enigmatic films.
esoteric
She has published several books on pathworking and other esoteric subjects.
incomprehensible
incomprehensible mathematics puzzles
arcane
unfathomable
How unfathomable and odd is life!
abstruse
Meetings keep reverting to discussions about abstruse resolutions.
4 (adjective)
Definition
stupid or dull
You can be a bit dense sometimes.
Synonyms
stupid (informal)
I'm not stupid, you know.
slow
thick
He speaks to me as if I'm thick.
dull
dumb (informal)
I came up with this dumb idea.
crass
They have behaved with crass insensitivity.
dozy (British, informal)
Some dozy bloke ignored the warning signs and drove into a lake.
stolid
the stolid faces of the two detectives
dopey (informal)
I was so dopey I believed him.
moronic
It was wanton, moronic vandalism.
obtuse
I think you're being deliberately obtuse.
brainless
I got treated as if I was a bit brainless.
blockheaded
braindead (informal)
dumb-ass (informal)
dead from the neck up (informal)
thickheaded
blockish
dim-witted (informal)
He plays a dimwitted Irish priest in the TV series.
slow-witted
thick-witted
Opposites
quick
,
bright
,
alert
,
clever
,
intelligent
Additional synonyms
in the sense of abstract
Definition
not applied or practical
starting with a few abstract principles
Synonyms
theoretical,
general,
complex,
academic,
intellectual,
subtle,
profound,
philosophical,
speculative,
unrealistic,
conceptual,
indefinite,
deep,
separate,
occult,
hypothetical,
generalized,
impractical,
arcane,
notional,
abstruse,
recondite,
theoretic,
conjectural,
unpractical,
nonconcrete
in the sense of abstruse
Definition
not easy to understand
Meetings keep reverting to discussions about abstruse resolutions.