/den/ , n. , v. , denned, denning .
n.
1. the lair or shelter of a wild animal, esp. a predatory mammal.
2. a room, often secluded, in a house or apartment, designed to provide a quiet, comfortable, and informal atmosphere for conversation, reading, writing, etc.
3. a cave used as a place of shelter or concealment.
4. a squalid or vile abode or place: dens of misery.
5. one of the units of a cub scout pack, analogous to a patrol in the Boy Scouts.
v.t.
6. to drive or pursue (an animal) into its den.
7. to kill (an animal) inside its den.
v.i.
8. to live in or as if in a den.
[ bef. 1000; ME; OE denn; cf. early D denne floor, cave, den, G Tenne floor ]