Dense

/dɛns/

Meaning & Definition

adjective
Closely compacted in substance.
The dense fog made driving difficult.
Having a high concentration of something.
The city's population is dense, resulting in crowded streets.
Difficult to understand due to complexity or obscurity.
The professor's lecture was so dense that many students struggled to keep up.
Thick, as in the foliage of trees.
We walked through the dense forest, surrounded by towering trees.

Etymology

From Latin 'densus', meaning 'thick, close, or compact'.

Common Phrases and Expressions

dense fog
A thick fog that significantly reduces visibility.
dense population
An area with a large number of people living close together.
dense with meaning
Containing a lot of depth or information in a few words.

Related Words

density
The degree of compactness of a substance.
denseness
The quality of being dense.

Slang Meanings

Used to describe someone who is perceived as slow-witted.
Stop being so dense and pay attention to what I'm saying!
Referring to complicated philosophical or scientific discussions.
That lecture was so dense; I could hardly keep up!