den

See also: Appendix:Variations of "den"

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Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English Dene.

Symbol

den

(international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Slavey. (macrolanguage)

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English den, from Old English denn (“den, lair (of a beast), cave; a swine-pasture, a woodland pasture for swine”), from Proto-West Germanic *dani (“threshing-floor, barn-floor”). Cognate with Scots den (“den, lair”), Middle Dutch denne (“burrow, den, cave, attic”), Dutch den (“ship's deck, threshing-floor, mountain floor”), Middle Low German denne, danne (“threshing-floor, small dale”), German Tenne (“threshing-floor, barn for threshing”).

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation, General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈdɛn/
- Audio (US): (file)
(Southern US, African-American Vernacular, pin–pen merger) IPA^(key): /ˈdɪ̟n/
Rhymes: -ɛn
Hyphenation: den
Homophone: din (pin–pen merger)

Noun

den (plural dens)

A small cavern or hollow place in the side of a hill, or among rocks; especially, a cave used by a wild animal for shelter or concealment.
Synonyms: lair; luster; Wiktionary appendix of animal terms, including their homes

a den of robbers

Daniel was put into the lions’ den.
A squalid or wretched place; a haunt.
a den of vice

an opium den; a gambling den
- 1980, Colin Hay, Ron Strykert, “Down Under”, performed by Men at Work:
  Lying in a den in Bombay
  With a slack jaw and not much to say
A comfortable room not used for formal entertaining.
Hypernyms: room < space, place, site, location

Coordinate terms: living room, living-room, lounge (esp. UK), loungeroom, lounge room (esp. Australia), parlour, parlor, sitting room, sitter, bedsit, front room, drawing room, zitkamer

Near-synonyms: family room, sunroom, Florida room, Arizona room, rec room, playroom
Synonym of fort (“structure improvised from furniture, etc. for playing games.”).
Our little girls love using bedsheets and other stuff around the house to make dens in the living room and pretending they're on adventures.
(UK, Scotland, obsolete) A narrow glen; a ravine; a dell.
- 1806, Sir William Forbes, An Account of the Life and Writings of James Beattie, LL.D., including many of his Original Letters:
  I have made several visits of late to the Den of Rubislaw
A group of Cub Scouts of the same age who work on projects together.

Derived terms

Translations

home of certain animals

Arabic: عَرِين m (ʕarīn) (for bigger carnivores), جُحْر m (juḥr) (for smaller carnivores, rodents and reptiles), عُشّ m (ʕušš) (for birds)
Armenian: որջ (hy) (orǰ), բույն (hy) (buyn)
Azerbaijani: yuva (az)
Bashkir: оя (uya), өң (üñ)
Basque: zulo, gordeleku (eu)
Belarusian: нара́ f (nará), бярло́г m (bjarlóh), мярло́га f (mjarlóha), ло́гавішча n (lóhavišča), ло́гава n (lóhava)
Bulgarian: бърло́га (bg) f (bărlóga), лего́вище (bg) n (legóvište)
Burmese: သားရဲတွင်း (my) (sa:rai:twang:)
Catalan: cau (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 巢穴 (zh) (cháoxué), 獸穴 / 兽穴 (zh) (shòuxué), 獸窟 / 兽窟 (shòukū), 獸窩 / 兽窝 (shòuwō)
Comorian:
Maore Comorian: gumbo class 5/6
Czech: doupě n, nora (cs) f, brloh m
Danish: hule (da) c
Dutch: hol (nl) n
Estonian: pesa (et), koobas (et), urg (et)
Finnish: luola (fi), pesä (fi)
French: antre (fr) m, tanière (fr) f, repaire (fr) m
Gagauz: yuva
Galician: tobo (gl) m, paleira (gl) f
Georgian: ბუნაგი (ka) (bunagi)
German: Höhle (de) f, Bau (de) m
Greek:
Ancient Greek: φωλεός m (phōleós)
Hebrew: מְחִילָה (he) f (mekhilá), גּוֹב (he) m (gov), גֹּב (he) m (gov)
Hindi: मांद (hi) f (mānd)
Hungarian: odú (hu), barlang (hu), kotorék (hu)
Indonesian: liang (id)
Irish: brocais f, pluais f, uachais f
Italian: covo (it) m, tana (it) f
Japanese: 巣窟 (ja) (そうくつ, sōkutsu)
Javanese: ꦭꦺꦁ (lèng)
Kalmyk: кевтр (kevtr)
Kaurna: yapa
Kazakh: апан (apan), аунақ (awnaq), жатақ (jataq), ұя (uya), үңгір (üŋgir)
Komi:
Komi-Permyak: гу (gu)

Komi-Zyrian: гу (gu)
Korean: 굴(窟) (ko) (gul), 소굴(巢窟) (ko) (sogul)
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: kun (ku) f, qul (ku)
Kyrgyz: үңкүр (ky) (üŋkür), түнөк (ky) (tünök)
Lao: ສຸ່ງ (sung)
Latin: lustrum n
Latvian: miga (lv) f
Lithuanian: urvas m
Macedonian: дувло n (duvlo)
Manx: towl m, aaght m
Mari:
Eastern Mari: вынем (vyńem)

Western Mari: пӹжӓш (pÿžäš)
Middle English: den
Norwegian:
Bokmål: hi (no) n
Occitan: tuta (oc) f
Ojibwe: waazh, waanzh
Persian:
Iranian Persian: لانِه (lâne), کُنام (konâm)
Polish: nora (pl) f, barłóg (pl) m, jama (pl) f, legowisko (pl) n, pieczara (pl) f, legowisko (pl) n, leże (pl) n, gawra (pl)
Portuguese: toca (pt), cova (pt)
Romanian: vizuină (ro) f
Russian: нора́ (ru) f (norá), ло́гово (ru) n (lógovo), берло́га (ru) f (berlóga) (esp. bears), ло́говище (ru) n (lógovišče)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: брлог m, јазбина f, јама f, лог m

Latin: brlog (sh) m, jazbina (sh) f, jama (sh) f, log (sh) m
Sicilian: jazzu (scn) m
Slovak: dúpä f, nora f, brloh (sk) m
Slovene: brlog (sl) m inan
Spanish: madriguera (es) f, cubil (es) m, guarida (es) f
Swedish: gryt (sv) n, håla (sv) c, jordkula (sv) c
Tagalog: kubil
Tajik: лона (lona), сӯрох (sürox)
Tatar: оя (tt) (oya), өн (tt) (ön)
Tocharian B: lesto
Turkish: in (tr)
Ottoman Turkish: این (in)
Turkmen: süren
Tuvan: ижээн (ijeen)
Udmurt: гу (gu)
Ukrainian: нора́ (uk) f (norá), барлі́г (uk) m (barlíh), лі́гвище n (líhvyšče), лі́гво n (líhvo)
Urdu: اَڈَّہ m (aḍḍa), غار m (ġār)
Uyghur: ئۇۋا (uwa), ئاپان (apan)
Uzbek: in (uz), uya (uz)
Vietnamese: hang (vi)
Welsh: ffau f

squalid or wretched place

Aghwan: 𐕐𐔰𐕎 (šan)
Bulgarian: свърта́лище (bg) n (svărtálište), барда́к (bg) m (bardák), верте́п (bg) m (vertép)
Finnish: pesä (fi), luola (fi)
Indonesian: liang (id)
Irish: poll m
Latin: lustrum n
Māori: hāpoki
Polish: melina (pl) f, speluna (pl) f
Portuguese: enxovia (pt)
Russian: прито́н (ru) m (pritón)
Swedish: skyffe (sv) n
Vietnamese: hang ổ (vi)
Welsh: ogof (cy) f

living room of a house

Bulgarian: дне́вна (bg) f (dnévna)
Danish: værelse (da) n, hybel c, (slang) hummer n, hule (da) c
Dutch: woonkamer (nl) c, huiskamer (nl) c, leefkamer (nl) c
Finnish: olohuone (fi)
French: salon (fr) m
German: Wohnzimmer (de) n
Indonesian: ruang santai
Irish: nead (ga) f
Italian: salotto (it) m
Latin: tablīnum n
Spanish: gabinete (es) m
Turkish: in (tr), sofa (tr)
Welsh: lloches f

Verb

den (third-person singular simple present dens, present participle denning, simple past and past participle denned)

(reflexive) To ensconce or hide oneself in (or as in) a den.
(intransitive, zoology) Of an animal, to use as a den; to take up residence in.
- 2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 203:
  Although present in virtually all habitats, it preferred to den in caves, so its distribution, especially in cold, northern areas, may have been limited to limestone and other rocky regions where caves form.
- 2023 August 30, Patrick Greenfield, “Why it may be time to stop using the polar bear as a symbol of the climate crisis”, in The Guardian‎^[3], →ISSN, archived from the original on 12 October 2026:
  “Denning” – behaviour around making dens – has changed and bears are swimming long distances, but, says Aars, there is still enough sea ice in the spring for the bears to hunt successfully.

Etymology 2

From Old French denier, from Latin denarius.

Noun

den

Abbreviation of denier (a unit of weight).

Etymology 3

Noun

den (plural dens)

(Northumbria, chiefly in place names) Alternative form of dene.

Derived terms

Walsden

Etymology 4

Noun

den (plural dens)

(now uncommon) Alternative form of den (“dune”).
- 1599 [1871], Nashe, Lenten Stuffe, page 26:
  There being aboue fiue thousand pounds worth of them at a time upon her dens a sunning.
  
  1776 [1796], Withering, Brit. Plants, III, page 563:
  
  On the sandy den at Teignmouth, plentiful.

Etymology 5

Adverb

den (not comparable)

Pronunciation spelling of then, representing AAVE, Bermuda English.

Anagrams

-end, DNE, End, NDE, NED, Ned, edn., end, end-, ned

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch den.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛn/

Noun

den (plural denne)

pine (tree)

Ahtna

Etymology

From Proto-Athabaskan *dəŋ. Cognate with Lower Tanana den.

Root

den

to know (a skill)

Stem set

Aspect	Imperfective	Perfective	Future	Optative
Neuter	den	diinʼ	diił	diinʼ
Neuter negative	dene	diinʼe	diinʼe	?
Transitional-negative	—	diide	diighe	—
Reversative	diix	diinʼ	diix	diix
Customary	diix	diix	diix	diix

Derived terms

cʼedahwdełdiixen (“teacher”)
daydilden (“he/she knows it (a language, story)”)
kołdiixi (“domestic animal”)
kułden (“he/she is handy”)
lakułden (“he/she is handy”)
utʼaa datsʼehwdeldiixi (“school”)
yiłden (“he/she knows it”)
ʼskułdene (“he/she is lonesome”)

References

Kari, James (1990), Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, pages 149-150

Akan

Alternative forms

dzen (Fante)

Pronunciation

Tone: LL^[1]

Adjective

den (Twi)

hard
Antonym: mmerɛ

nsa yɛ den ― the hand is hard^[2]

Related terms

(Nouns)

denhyɛ

(Adverbs)

denneennen

(Adjectives)

dennen

References

^ Kotey, Paul A. (1998), Twi-English/English-Twi Dictionary‎^[1], New York: Hippocrene Books, →ISBN
^ Dolphyne, Florence Abena (1996), A Comprehensive Course in Twi (Asante) for the Non-Twi Learner‎^[2], Accra, Ghana: Ghana Universities Press, →ISBN, page 123

Bambara

Noun

den

child
fruit

Derived terms

(Sense 1)

Verb

den (intransitive)

to bear fruit

Breton

Etymology

From Proto-Brythonic *dün, from Proto-Celtic *gdonyos (“human, person”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰéǵʰom-yo- (“earthling, human”), a derivation of *dʰéǵʰōm (“earth”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈdẽːn/

Noun

den m (plural tud or denion or dened)

Mutation

Mutation of *den*
	unmutated	soft	aspirate	hard
singular	den	zen	unchanged	ten
plural	denion	zenion	unchanged	tenion

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Breton.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Catalan

Verb

den

inflection of dar:
1. third-person plural present subjunctive
2. third-person plural imperative

Chungli Ao

Etymology

Cognate with the Mongsen Ao comitative marker /tʰən/.

Postposition

den

with (in a comitative sense)

Cimbrian

Pronoun

den

inflection of dèar:
1. accusative singular masculine
2. dative plural

Determiner

den

inflection of dèar:
1. accusative singular masculine
2. dative plural

Cornish

Etymology

From Old Cornish den, from Proto-Brythonic *dün, from Proto-Celtic *gdonyos (“human, person”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰéǵʰom-yo- (“earthling, human”), a derivation of *dʰéǵʰōm (“earth”).

Pronunciation

(Revived Middle Cornish) IPA^(key): [dɛːn]
(Revived Late Cornish) IPA^(key): [deːn]
Audio (Revived Late Cornish): (file)

Noun

den m (plural tus)

man
person

Derived terms

den a vri, den meur y hanow (“celebrity”)
den a'n north (“northerner”)
den arader (“ploughman”)
den arvow (“man-at-arms”)
den bal (“miner”)
den diwysyk (“enthusiast”)
den efanvos (“spaceman”)
den ergh (“snowman”)
den gwyls (“savage”)
den hen (“elder, senior”)
den jentyl (“gentleman”)
den mas, densa (“good man”)
den ragvreusek (“bigot”)
den vyth (“nobody”)
den y'n bys (“nobody at all”)
den-difudhi (“firefighter”)
denfurvek (“anthropomorphic”)
denfurvekhe (“anthropomorphise”, verb)
denfurvekheans (“anthropomorphisation”)
dengerensedhek (“humanitarian”)
dengibya (“abduct”, verb)
dengibyans (“kidnapping”, noun)
denladh (“homicide, manslaughter”)
denladha (“commit manslaughter”, verb)
denladra (“abduct, kidnap”, verb)
denladrans (“abduction, kidnapping”)
denledhyas, denledhyades (“assassin, killer, murderer”)
denses (“humanity”)
densys (“humankind”)

Mutation

Mutation of *den*
radical	soft	aspirate	hard	mixed
den	dhen	unchanged	ten	ten

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Cornish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

“den” in Cornish Dictionary / Gerlyver Kernewek, Akademi Kernewek.

Czech

Czech Wikipedia has an article on:

den

Wikipedia ^cs

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈdɛn]
Audio: (file)
Rhymes: -ɛn

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *dyew-der.

Proto-Balto-Slavic *dein-der.

Proto-Slavic *dьnь

Old Czech den

Czech den

Inherited from Old Czech den, from Proto-Slavic *dьnь.

Noun

den m inan or (archaic or literary) m anim (relational adjective denní)

day (24 hours, usually from midnight to midnight)
jednoho dne ― one day, someday

po několika dnech ― after a few days

za pár dní ― in a couple of days

Jednoho dne tě chytí. ― They're gonna catch you one day.
daytime (time between sunrise and sunset)
(astronomy) day (rotational period of a body orbiting a star)
Den na Merkuru trvá téměř 59 pozemských dní. ― A day on Mercury lasts almost 59 terrestrial days.

Declension

Declension of den (mixed masculine inanimate reducible)

	singular	plural
nominative	den	dni, dny
genitive	dne	dní, dnů
dative	dnu, dni	dnům
accusative	den	dni, dny
vocative	dne, dni	dni, dny
locative	dnu, dni	dnech
instrumental	dnem	dny

when animate:

Declension of den (mixed masculine animate reducible)

	singular	plural
nominative	den	dnové
genitive	dne	dní, dnů
dative	dnu, dni, dnovi	dnům
accusative	dne	dni, dny
vocative	dne, dni	dnové
locative	dnu, dni, dnovi	dnech, dních
instrumental	dnem	dny, dni

Derived terms

adjectives

adverbs

nouns

phrases

dobrý den

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

den

genitive plural of dno

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

den

genitive plural of dna

Anagrams

dne

Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse þann, the accusative form of sá, from Proto-Germanic *sa (“that”), from Proto-Indo-European *só (“this, that”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛnˀ/, [ˈd̥ɛnˀ], [d̥ɛn], [d̥n̩]

Article

den c (neuter det, plural de)

(definite) the (used before an adjective preceding a noun)
bilen - the car; den røde bil - the red car

Pronoun

den c (neuter det, plural de)

(demonstrative) that, the
(personal) it

Dutch

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch dan, danne, denne (“pine tree”), from Old Dutch *danna, from Proto-West Germanic *dannā (“pine tree”). Related to German Tanne.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛn/
Audio: (file)
Hyphenation: den
Rhymes: -ɛn

Noun

den m (plural dennen, diminutive dennetje n)

pine, pine tree
Synonyms: dennenboom, pijnboom

Hypernym: naaldboom

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Middle Dutch den.

Pronunciation

(Belgium) IPA^(key): /dən/
(Netherlands) IPA^(key): /dɛn/

Article

den

(archaic) dative masculine/neuter/plural of de (“the”)
Nederland in den goeden ouden tijd. ― The Netherlands in the good old days.

De baron gaf den koetsier een wenk en het rijtuig rolde heen. ― The baron gave the coachman a sign and the carriage rode away. (from the story Gaston von Frankrijk by J.J.A. Goeverneur)

In den beginne schiep God den hemel en de aarde. ― In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
(archaic) accusative masculine singular of de
In den beginne schiep God den hemel en de aarde. ― In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
(Southern, dialectal) masculine singular of de

Usage notes

The distinction of the dative case, which had long been frail and without any basis in actual speech, widely fell out of use over the course of the 19th century. The use of den for the masculine object case, however, remained usual in the written language until the spelling reform of 1947. Since then only de is generally used in standard Dutch. Den survives in idiomatic expressions, including surnames (e.g. Van den Berg).
In Flemish, Brabantian, and Limburgish dialects and vernaculars, den is still widely used with masculine nouns, but without any case distinction. Often den is used before vowels and certain consonants, while de is used before other consonants.
The now common Netherlandic pronunciation /dɛn/ is a spelling pronunciation. The original pronunciation (still in use in Belgium) is with a schwa, /dən/.

Declension

Dutch definite article

	masculine	feminine	neuter	plural
nominative	de	de	het	de
genitive¹	des	der	des	der
dative¹	den	der	den	den
accusative¹	den	de	het	de
¹⁾ Archaic

Derived terms

op den duur

German

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /de(ː)n/, (stressed) [deːn], (unstressed) [dɛn ~ den ~ dɪn], (reduced) [dən ~ dn̩ ~ n̩]
- The full form is used under sentence stress. Otherwise the vowel is normally shortened and may approach /ɛ/ or /ɪ/ depending on the accent. The reduced form is heard mostly, though not exclusively, after prepositions. (Colloquially, it may even be muted entirely after nasals: in den Garten > in’n Garten > in Garten.)
Audio (Germany (Berlin)): (file)
Audio: (file)
Homophone: dehn (stressed)
Rhymes: -eːn

Article

den (definite)

inflection of der (“the”):
1. accusative masculine singular
2. dative plural

Usage notes

The suffix -en or -n is added to many nouns in the dative plural (Hand → plural Hände → dative plural Händen). Exceptions include nouns that already have -en or -n in the plural in all cases (Frauen, Bauern, Namen), nouns with plural -s (Autos), and foreign plurals (such as Latin or Greek plurals): Genus → Genera, Visum → Visa (or Visen), Tempus → Tempora, Numerus → Numeri, Trauma → Traumata (or Traumen). One would say, for example, mit den Visa, and not *mit den Visan, even though these plurals end in a vowel.

Declension

Declension of *der* (definite article)
	singular			plural
	m	f	n	plural
nominative	der	die	das	die
genitive	des	der	des	der
dative	dem	der	dem	den
accusative	den	die	das	die

Pronoun

den

that; whom; accusative masculine singular of der

Irish

Alternative forms

de’n (superseded)

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dʲɛnˠ/, /dʲənˠ/
(Connemara, Aran Islands) IPA^(key): /ɡənˠ/

Contraction

den

contraction of de +‎ an
Bhris mé den chrann é. ― I broke it off the tree.

Fuair sé bás den ocras. ― He died of hunger.

Usage notes

This contraction is obligatory, i.e. *de an never appears uncontracted. It triggers lenition of a following consonant other than d, s, or t.

Related terms

Irish preposition contractions
	contracted with							copular forms
base form	an (“the sg”)	na (“the pl”)	mo (“my”)	do (“your”)	a (“his, her, their; which (present)”)	ár (“our”)	ar (“which (past)”)	before a consonant	before a vowel
base form	an (“the sg”)	na (“the pl”)	mo (“my”)	do (“your”)	a (“his, her, their; which (present)”)	ár (“our”)	ar (“which (past)”)	before a consonant	present/future	past/conditional
de (“from”)	den	de na desna*	de mo dem*	de do ded, det	dá	dár		dar	darb	darbh
do (“to, for”)	don	do na dosna*	do mo dom*	do do dod, dot	dá	dár		dar	darb	darbh
faoi (“under, about”)	faoin	faoi na	faoi mo	faoi do	faoina	faoinár	faoinar		faoinarb	faoinarbh
i (“in”)	sa, san	sna	i mo im*	i do id, it	ina	inár	inar		inarb	inarbh
le (“with”)	leis an	leis na	le mo lem*	le do led, let	lena	lenár	lenar		lenarb	lenarbh
ó (“from, since”)	ón	ó na ósna*	ó mo óm*	ó do ód, ót	óna	ónár	ónar		ónarb	ónarbh
trí (“through”)	tríd an	trí na	trí mo	trí do	trína	trínár	trínar		trínarb	trínarbh

*dialectal

Japanese

Romanization

den

Rōmaji transcription of でん

Lower Tanana

Etymology

From Proto-Athabaskan *dəŋ.

Root

den

to know (a skill)

Stem set

Aspect	Imperfective	Perfective	Future	Optative
Neuter	denh	din'	din'	—
Potentialitive	dinh	—	—	—
Reversative	dix	din'	dix	dix

Derived terms

be'aɬ ch'eghwɬdiyi (“story, allegory”)
tr'edoxwdaldeną́ (“he/she mispronounces”)
tr'exuɬdena (“he/she is lonesome”)
tr'exwdaldena (“he/she is incompetent”)
xeluldeni (“birch good for snowshoes”)
xwldenenh (“talented person”)
xwldenh (“he/she knows”)

References

Kari, James et al. (2024), Kari, James, editor, Lower Tanana Dene Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, page 121

Luxembourgish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /den/, [dən]

Determiner

den m

unstressed form of deen

Declension

Luxembourgish definite articles
	singular			plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter	plural
nom./acc.	deen (den)	déi (d')	dat (d')	déi (d')
dative	deem (dem)	där (der)	deem (dem)	deen (den)
genitive		der

Malay

Pronunciation

(Literary Standard) IPA^(key): /ˈden/ [ˈden]
Rhymes: -den, -en
Hyphenation: den

Pronoun

den (Jawi spelling دين)

I, me, my

Mandarin

Romanization

den

nonstandard spelling of dēn
nonstandard spelling of dèn

Usage notes

Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Middle Dutch

Article

den

inflection of die:

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English denn, from Proto-West Germanic *dani. Forms with a final vowel are probably generalised datives.

Alternative forms

denne

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛn/, /ˈdɛn(ə)/

Noun

den (plural dennes)

A cave or cavern.
A chamber of residence:
1. A den (animal lair)
  - c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.)‎^[4], published c. 1410, Matheu 8:20, folio 3, verso, column 1; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:
    and iheſus ſeide to him / foxis han dennes ⁊ bꝛiddis of heuene han neeſtis.· but mannes ſone haþ not where he ſchal reſte his heed
    But Jesus said to him, "Foxes have dens and the birds up above have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere he can rest his head."
2. A refuge; a shelter.
A catacomb (subterranean grave)
(anatomy) A cavity; a division.

Descendants

English: den
Scots: den

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛːn/

Noun

den (plural denes)

A dean (ecclesiastical official)
A leader of a group of ten.
An officer of a guild.
(rare, by extension) A leader of a group.

Descendants

English: dean

References

“dēn, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 3

Noun

den

alternative form of dene

Etymology 4

Noun

den

alternative form of deyne

Etymology 5

Noun

den

(West Midland) alternative form of dyne

Middle High German

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (before 13^th CE) /ˈdɛn/

Pronoun

dën

inflection of dër:
1. masculine accusative singular
2. dative plural

Minangkabau

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛn/
Rhymes: -en

Pronoun

den

I, me, my; first person singular (informal use; in dialogue with the same age person or with those who are younger)

Mokilese

Noun

den

behavior

Inflection

Possessive forms of *den* (tight inalienable possession, -i stem)
singular possessor	first person	dinihoa
	second person	dinimwen
	third person	dinin
dual possessors	first person inclusive	dinisa
	first person exclusive	dinima
	second person	dinimwa
	third person	dinira
plural possessors	first person inclusive	dinisai
	first person exclusive	dinimai
	second person	dinimwai
	third person	dinirai
remote plural possessors	first person inclusive	dinihs
	first person exclusive	dinimi
	second person	dinimwi
	third person	dinihr
construct form		dinin

References

Harrison, Sheldon P.; Albert, Salich Y. (1977), Mokilese-English Dictionary‎^[5], Honolulu: The University Press of Hawaii, →ISBN, page 49

Nigerian Pidgin

Etymology

From English then.

Adverb

den

then
- 2025 April 23, Orla Guerin, “More dan 150 pipo injure as earthquakes shake buildings for Turkey Istanbul”, in BBC News Pidgin‎^[6], archived from the original on 4 October 2026:
  For now, no immediate reports of casualties or wider damage, but Istanbul officials say dem dey check buildings, den warn pipo to stay clear of potentially-damaged sites.
  For now, there are no immediate reports of casualties or wider damage, but Istanbul officials say they are checking buildings, then warning people to stay clear of potentially damaged sites.

Norwegian Bokmål

Norwegian Wikipedia has an article on:

Pronomen

Wikipedia ^no

Etymology

PIE word
*só

Inherited from Middle Norwegian then,^[1] from Old Norse þann (also þenn), the masculine accusative singular of sá (“that”), from the corresponding form of Proto-Germanic *sa, from Proto-Indo-European *só (“that”). The originally masculine accusative form came to be used for both masculine and feminine nouns, in subject as well as object position.

Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk den (“that”), Danish den (“that”), Swedish den (“that”), Faroese tann (“that”), Icelandic þann (“that”), German den (“that”), and English that and the.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛnː/, [dɛnː]
(unstressed) IPA^(key): /dən/, [dən]
Rhymes: -ɛnː
Hyphenation: den

Determiner

den m or f (neuter det, plural de)

that; indicating a particular masculine or feminine singular referent, often one more distant from the speaker or previously mentioned.
Jeg vil kjøpe den jakka. ― I want to buy that jacket.
- 1881, Henrik Ibsen, Gengangere‎^[7], page 127:
  hvad er der påfærde? Hvor kommer den lysningen fra?
  what is happening? Where does that glow come from?
- 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[8], page 3:
  Ekdal: «Vær snil, Pettersen, og lad mig få slippe ind den vejen» (peger mod tapetdøren)
  Ekdal: “Be kind, Pettersen, and let me come in that way” (points towards the concealed door)
- 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[9], page 15:
  Gina blev jo ikke længe her i huset; for her var så megen forstyrrelse den tid
  Gina did not stay long in this house, as there was so much trouble here at that time
- 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[10], page 84:
  han havde slig en urimelig glup hund, Deres far. – Og den hunden […] hented anden op igen
  your father had such an extraordinarily clever dog. And that dog […] brought the duck up again
- 1886, Henrik Ibsen, Rosmersholm‎^[11], page 23:
  al respekt for stamtavler og hvad dertil hører. Men tiden er ikke for den slags sysler
  all respect to pedigrees and everything that goes with them. But these are not the times for that sort of pursuit
- 1890, Henrik Ibsen, Hedda Gabler‎^[12], page 99:
  jeg synes her lugter lavendler […] Men den lugt har kanske tante Julie ført med sig
  I think I can smell lavender here […] But Aunt Julie may have brought that smell with her
- 1899, Henrik Ibsen, Når vi døde vågner‎^[13], page 116:
  går det ikke, så går det ikke. Der er ikke noget at snakke om den ting
  if it won’t work, it won’t work. There is nothing to discuss about that matter
1. With her, this; with der, that over there.
  Den boka her er ny, men den boka der er gammel. ― This book is new, but that book over there is old.
  - 1888, Henrik Ibsen, Fruen fra havet‎^[14], page 116:
    Ellida: « […] Ser du ham da ikke? Der borte står han jo!» – Wangel (ser derhen): «Den mand der?»
    Ellida: “[…] Can’t you see him? He is standing over there!” — Wangel (looks that way): “That man over there?”
  - 1896, Henrik Ibsen, John Gabriel Borkman‎^[15], page 70:
    kender du den musiken der oppe på salen?
    do you recognise that music up there in the drawing room?
2. Expressing familiarity, annoyance or another attitude toward the referent.
  Nå begynner han med den sytingen igjen! ― Now he's starting that whining again!
  - 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[16], page 77:
    det er underligt med den menneskeart
    it is strange, this human race
  - 1927, Johan Bojer, Samlede verker‎^[17], volume V, page 7:
    det var da nifst med den der branden
    that fire really was frightening
  - 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[18], page 42:
    nu er den djævel strøgen sin vej
    now that devil has run off
  - 1886, Henrik Ibsen, Rosmersholm‎^[19], page 57:
    Jøsses, – Jøsses. Den frøken West. Slig, som hun kan snakke iblandt
    Goodness, goodness. That Miss West. The way she can talk sometimes
  - 1925, Vilhelm Krag, Baldevin‎^[20], page 15:
    jeg har nok truffet den der agurken før idag
    I have certainly met that rascal before today
  - 1898, Amalie Skram, chapter XXIX, in Afkom‎^[21], 3rd edition, published 1924:
    Han havde altid saa meget for, den Julius
    He always had so much going on, that Julius
  - 1911, Sigrid Undset, Jenny‎^[22], page 138:
    hun har forlovet sig med den der Gram
    she has become engaged to that fellow Gram
  - 1919, Johan Falkberget, Fimbulvinter‎^[23], page 81:
    aa, den Ola Træet, den fordømte Ola Træet!
    oh, that Ola Træet, that damned Ola Træet!
  - 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[24], page 96:
    jeg har nu fåt portkonen op til at skure efter ham, den grisen
    I have now got the porter’s wife up to scrub after him, the pig
  - 1892, Henrik Ibsen, Bygmester Solness‎^[25], page 147:
    det har han nok sikkret sig, han, – den mosjøen
    he has certainly secured that for himself, that gentleman
  1. (literary) With smule or similar words: what little.
    Vi får dele den smule mat vi har. ― We'll have to share what little food we have.
    - 1874, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, En fallit‎^[26], page 30:
      [vi skal] lade den smule bank her i fremtiden være i fred
      [we shall] leave that little bank alone in future
the; identifying a referent through a following relative clause, infinitive or other specifying expression.
Jeg lånte den boka du anbefalte. ― I borrowed the book you recommended.

Hun tok seg den frihet å åpne brevet. ― She took the liberty of opening the letter.
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[27], page 65:
  nå, så får vi altså den glæde at skikke herr proprietariussen afgårde som storthingsmand
  well, then we shall have the pleasure of sending the landed proprietor off as a member of parliament
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[28], page 209:
  gør mig den tjeneste, ikke at tale et ord til nogen om denne dumme historie
  do me the favour of not saying a word to anyone about this foolish business
- 1879, Henrik Ibsen, Et dukkehjem‎^[29], page 55:
  vil De være af den godhed at anvende Deres indflydelse til fordel for mig
  would you be so kind as to use your influence in my favour
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[30], page 81:
  den ting er sikker, at gjort er gjort
  one thing is certain: what is done is done
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[31], page 9:
  [rypesteggen] flaksed kaglende, forskræmt, fra den knart, hvor han sad gemt
  [the cock ptarmigan] fluttered away, cackling in fright, from the knoll where he had been hidden
- 1875, Henrik Ibsen, Catilina‎^[32], page 20:
  den dag, da intet mer vi har tilovers
  the day when we have nothing left
- 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[33], page 105:
  Hedvig, å ræk mig den knibetangen, som ligger på hylden
  Hedvig, oh, pass me those pincers lying on the shelf
- 1896, Henrik Ibsen, John Gabriel Borkman‎^[34], page 97:
  der var ikke den ting, du veg tilbage for
  there was nothing you shrank from
- 1872, Henrik Ibsen, Kongs-Emnerne‎^[35], page 139:
  hvem var jevnhøj med Harald Hårfager, den tid der sad en konge på hvert næss
  who was Harald Fairhair’s equal in the days when a king ruled every headland
(colloquial, emphatic) such a; what a; emphasizing an extraordinary degree or quality.
Vi fikk den utsikten fra toppen! ― What a view we had from the top!
- 1903, Hans Jæger, Fængsel og Fortvilelse‎^[36], page 315:
  det risler mei underlig ned gjemmen ryggen, og jei føler alle mine muskler paralyseres ve det glimte i de øjnene, og det smile om den munnen og den klangen i den stemmen
  a strange shiver runs down my back, and I feel all my muscles paralysed by that gleam in those eyes, that smile around that mouth, and that sound in that voice
- 1992, Sverre Knudsen, Rask‎^[37], page 65:
  moren hans var den dama
  his mother was quite a woman
In den og den or den eller den: such and such.
De lovet oss den og den fordelen. ― They promised us such and such a benefit.
- 2010, Chris Tvedt, Dødens sirkel:
  […] slår fast at den eller den dommen er feil
  […] declares that such and such a judgment is wrong

Usage notes

Den agrees with both masculine and feminine singular nouns; det is neuter singular and de is plural.
The following noun normally takes its definite form: den bilen ("that car"), den boka ("that book"). An adjective, when present, normally takes its definite form: den røde bilen ("that red car"). A noun without the definite suffix also occurs in literary or formal constructions, fixed expressions and phrases specified by a following clause or infinitive, such as den hensikt å ... ("the intention of ...").
denne ordinarily points to something nearer the speaker. den may likewise refer to something nearby when combined with her: den her boka or den boka her ("this book").
Colloquial combinations also include den herre and den derre, as in den derre bilen ("that car").

Pronoun

den m or f (genitive dens, neuter det, plural de, objective plural dem)

(personal pronoun) it; referring to a masculine or feminine singular noun, usually a thing, abstraction or animal.
Hvor er boka? Jeg finner den ikke. ― Where is the book? I can't find it.
- 1916, Tryggve Andersen, Samlede fortællinger‎^[38], volume I, page 49:
  det var da den mindste hos major Brager blev døbt, og den var snart aaret
  it was when Major Brager’s youngest was christened, and the child was almost a year old
- 1875, Henrik Ibsen, Digte‎^[39], page 86:
  om høsten, da grågåsen fløj mod sør, han mødte den undervejs
  in autumn, when the greylag goose flew south, he met it on its way
- 1884, Henrik Ibsen, Vildanden‎^[40], page 125:
  solen skinned som den plejer
  the sun shone as it usually does
- 1890, Henrik Ibsen, Hedda Gabler‎^[41], page 138:
  en skål for Dem også, fru Tesman. Tak for sandheden. Den leve!
  a toast to you too, Mrs Tesman. Thank you for the truth. Long may it live!
- 1890, Knut Hamsun, Sult‎^[42], page 254:
  hun tog efter kaapen, som forat klæde den paa
  she reached for her cloak to put it on
- 1923, Hans Aanrud, Fortællinger‎^[43], volume I, page 117:
  han maatte gløtte paa fjøsdøren og se ind til kalven. Jo, den blev ganske bra
  he had to open the cowshed door a little and look in at the calf. Yes, it was coming along quite well
1. In telling the time, it; understood as klokken (“the clock”).
  Den er snart ti. ― It's almost ten.
  - 1873, Henrik Ibsen, Kærlighedens komedie‎^[44], page 19:
    fru Halm (ser på sit uhr): «Men den er otte snart.»
    Mrs Halm (looks at her watch): “But it is almost eight.”
2. (chiefly colloquial or poetic) Repeating or anticipating a noun phrase for emphasis.
  Den sykkelen, den er min. ― That bicycle is mine.
  
  Den er dyr, den sykkelen. ― That bicycle is expensive.
  
  Vinteren er lang, den. ― The winter certainly is long.
  - 1873, Henrik Ibsen, Kærlighedens komedie‎^[45], page 82:
    men denne strid for troen, den er jo min fremtids bedste drøm!
    but this struggle for the faith is the finest dream of my future!
  - 1882, Henrik Ibsen, En folkefiende‎^[46], page 217:
    og skolen, den skal holdes i salen, hvor de skældte mig ud for en folkefiende
    and the school will be held in the hall where they called me an enemy of the people
  - 1895, Henrik Ibsen, Lille Eyolf‎^[47], page 127:
    du mener vel, at lykken, – den finder vi aldrig mere
    you mean that happiness is something we shall never find again
  - 1896, Henrik Ibsen, John Gabriel Borkman‎^[48], page 148:
    nå ja, – vinteren er jo lang, den
    well, yes — winter is long, after all
  - 1881, Henrik Ibsen, Gengangere‎^[49], page 88:
    ja, samvittigheden – den kan være fæl, den, sommetider
    yes, conscience — it can be terrible sometimes
  - 1915, Dikken Zwilgmeyer, Inger-Johanne-bøkerne‎^[50], volume IV, page 19:
    bedstemor nikket fornøiet: «Duus, hører De det, hun er ikke borte den.»
    Grandmother nodded contentedly: “Duus, do you hear that? She’s no fool, that one.”
  - 1923, Hans Aanrud, Fortællinger‎^[51], volume I, page 116:
    den bed forresten stærkest paa Jon, denne kamp
    this struggle had, incidentally, taken its greatest toll on Jon
(demonstrative) that; that one; a particular thing, animal or person.
Jeg tar den der. ― I'll take that one over there.
- 1895, Henrik Ibsen, Lille Eyolf‎^[52], page 32:
  Rottejomfruen: «Synes ikke den unge herre, at han («Mopsemand») har et mildt og elskeligt åsyn?» – Eyolf (forbauset, peger): «Den der!»
  The Rat-Wife: “Doesn’t the young gentleman think that he (‘Mopsemand’) has a gentle and lovable face?” — Eyolf (astonished, points): “That one!”
- 1895, Henrik Ibsen, Lille Eyolf‎^[53], page 9:
  på hver af sidevæggene en dør, den til højre er en dobbeltdør
  a door in each of the side walls; the one on the right is a double door
1. (colloquial) that; a remark, joke or excuse.
  den var god! — that was a good one!
  
  den går ikke! — that won't wash!; I don't buy that!
  
  Jeg skjønte ikke den. Kan du forklare vitsen? ― I didn't get that one. Can you explain the joke?
  - 1917, Gunnar Heiberg, Samlede dramatiske verker‎^[54], volume I, page 19:
    aanei, far! Jeg skal nok passe min skolegjerning. De skal ikke faa noget at klage. Nei da. Den var ikke heldig
    oh no, Father! I shall certainly attend to my schoolwork. You shall have nothing to complain about. No indeed. That was not a fortunate remark
2. this; introducing an explanation.
  Saken er den at vi har dårlig tid. ― The thing is that we're short of time.
  - 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[55], page 198:
    fejlen er den, jeg har været for from
    the trouble is that I have been too meek
the one; whoever; a person identified by a following clause, usually introduced by som.
Den som kommer først, får velge. ― Whoever arrives first gets to choose.
- 1875, Henrik Ibsen, Catilina‎^[56], page 54:
  vel den, der kunde glemme
  fortunate is the one who could forget
- 1885, Henrik Ibsen, Brand‎^[57], page 169:
  hver den, som ser Jehova, dør!
  whoever sees Jehovah dies!
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[58], page 10:
  den, som står bagved og styrer slæden, det er gamle Lundestad
  the one standing behind and steering the sledge is old Lundestad
- 1888, Henrik Ibsen, Fruen fra havet‎^[59], page 75:
  understyrmanden var nok den, som havde dræbt ham
  the second mate was apparently the one who had killed him
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[60], page 250:
  jeg er ikke den, De synes at tro
  I am not the person you seem to think
- 1927, Johan Bojer, Samlede verker‎^[61], volume I, page 62:
  […] den, de var vant at stemme paa
  […] the one they were used to voting for
1. In den som ...!, expressing a wish: if only ...!
  Den som hadde ferie nå! ― If only I were on holiday now!
  - 1879, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Leonarda‎^[62], page 53:
    ja, den, som havde Deres styrke!
    ah, if only I had your strength!
  - 1919, Kristian Elster d.y., Av Skyggernes Slegt‎^[63], page 219:
    den som kunde faa vaske sig. Og faa litt frokost
    if only one could have a wash. And get a little breakfast
2. (obsolete, poetic) whoever; with the subject relative marker omitted.
  - 1908, Hans E. Kinck, Driftekaren‎^[64], page 95:
    den kjetter er idag, imorgen er profet!
    whoever is a heretic today is a prophet tomorrow!
In den og den or den eller den: so-and-so; an unspecified person.
Hun spurte om jeg kjente den og den. ― She asked whether I knew so-and-so.
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[65], page 119:
  man spørger ikke længere om hvorledes en formue er erhvervet […] man spørger blot: hvormeget er den eller den værd?
  people no longer ask how a fortune was acquired […] they merely ask: how much is so-and-so worth?
- 1927, Sigurd Hoel, Syndere i sommersol‎^[66], page 273:
  dere [er] flagrere og erobrere som tar den og den
  you [are] flirts and conquerors who take this person and that
1. (euphemistic) In den og den: the devil.
  Det skal jeg, den og den ta meg, få gjort! ― I'll get it done, I'll be damned!
  - 1870, P.Chr. Asbjørnsen, Norske Huldre-Eventyr og Folkesagn, page 76:
    jeg har ikke noget at skaffe med nissen, og kommer han til mig, skal jeg den og den tage mig, nok føise ham på døren
    I have nothing to do with the household spirit, and if he comes to me, the devil take me if I don’t send him packing
(obsolete) which; introducing a nonrestrictive relative clause.
Hun rakte ham boken, den han straks åpnet. ― She handed him the book, which he immediately opened.
- 1880, Jonas Lie, Rutland‎^[67], page 125:
  [han] modtog taus den stoppede pibe af sin hustu, den hun […] selv tændte med en fidibus
  [he] silently received the filled pipe from his wife, which she […] lit herself with a spill
- 1912, Amalie Skram, Samlede Værker, volume II, page 503:
  nu havde han faaet sin opgave, den han frivillig i tankeløs letsindighed havde paatat sig
  now he had been given his task, which he had voluntarily undertaken in thoughtless carelessness
- 1916, Tryggve Andersen, Samlede fortællinger‎^[68], volume III, page 38:
  [hagen] var indhegnet af en tæt, graa skigard, bag den en forvokset syrinhæks kvister strittede
  [the garden] was enclosed by a close grey wooden fence, behind which the branches of an overgrown lilac hedge stuck out

Usage notes

Den has the same form as subject and object: den ligger her ("it is lying here"), jeg ser den ("I see it"). Its genitive is dens ("its"); the corresponding neuter is det (genitive dets), and the plural personal pronoun is de (object dem, genitive deres).
Personal den normally refers to things and animals; han and hun normally refer to people. Independent demonstrative den can refer to a person, sometimes dismissively, and den som ... ("the one who ...; whoever ...") is ordinary usage. This differs from using personal den as a general gender-neutral substitute for han or hun.
The reflexive pronoun is seg: Katten vasker seg ("The cat is washing itself").

Article

den m or f (neuter det, plural de)

the; the definite article with a masculine or feminine singular adjective phrase.
Den gamle stolen står ved vinduet. ― The old chair is by the window.
- 1875, Henrik Ibsen, Digte‎^[69], page 2:
  kong Lear på den vilde hede
  King Lear on the wild heath
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt‎^[70], page 26:
  den fandens Peer
  that damned Peer
- 1873, Henrik Ibsen, Kærlighedens komedie‎^[71], page 100:
  forlovet mand er tabt for venners lag; det er nok kærnen i den hele sag
  an engaged man is lost to his circle of friends; that is surely the heart of the whole matter
- 1883, Henrik Ibsen, Gildet på Solhaug‎^[72], page 30:
  den hellige Krist
  the holy Christ
- 1890, Henrik Ibsen, Hedda Gabler‎^[73], page 26:
  den gode gud
  the good Lord
- 1899, Henrik Ibsen, Når vi døde vågner‎^[74], page 97:
  jeg var ble’t så nervøs i den senere tid
  I had become so nervous lately
- 1917, Knut Hamsun, Markens Grøde‎^[75], volume I, page 27:
  den første sne faldt
  the first snow fell
- 1927, Johan Bojer, Samlede verker‎^[76], volume I, page 81:
  den isete riggen uler og skriker i vindbøiene
  the ice-covered rigging howls and screams in the gusts
- 1918, Gunnar Heiberg, Samlede dramatiske verker‎^[77], volume III, page 33:
  [Vestby] har den rigtige arten
  [Vestby] has the right sort of character
- 2006 June 16, Aftenposten, section 4, page 6:
  den i overkant harde treningen
  the somewhat excessive training
1. With an ordinal, a date, or an epithet following a name.
  Vi kommer den 17. mai. ― We'll come on May 17.
  
  Olav den hellige ― Olaf the Holy
  - 1879, Henrik Ibsen, Et dukkehjem‎^[78], page 61:
    pappa døde den 29. september
    Papa died on 29 September
2. (poetic) With an adjective placed after its noun.
  på bølgen den blå ― on the blue sea
  - 1883, Henrik Ibsen, Gildet på Solhaug‎^[79], page 44:
    ved strengeklang træder vi dansen den nat så lang
    to the sound of strings we dance through the long night
With a substantivized adjective or determiner: the ... one; the ... person.
Jeg valgte den billigste. ― I chose the cheapest one.
- 1872, Henrik Ibsen, Kongs-Emnerne‎^[80], page 59:
  han skulde ikke være den odelsbårne?
  could he be the rightful heir?
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[81], page 115:
  den ene hånd vasker den anden
  one hand washes the other
- 1874, Henrik Ibsen, De unges forbund‎^[82], page 224:
  tak, Lundestad! De er dog den gamle!
  thank you, Lundestad! You are still your old self!
- 1873, Henrik Ibsen, Kærlighedens komedie‎^[83], page 132:
  er ikke verden overalt den samme?
  is the world not the same everywhere?
- 1892, Henrik Ibsen, Bygmester Solness‎^[84], page 179:
  jeg er levende lænket til den døde
  I am chained alive to the dead
- 1895, Henrik Ibsen, Lille Eyolf‎^[85], page 74:
  jeg kaster mig lige i armene på – på den første den bedste!
  I shall throw myself straight into the arms of — of the first man who comes along!
- 1880, Jonas Lie, Rutland‎^[86], page 283:
  den vedkommende
  the person concerned
- 1916, Tryggve Andersen, Samlede fortællinger‎^[87], volume I, page 49:
  det var da den mindste hos major Brager blev døbt
  it was when Major Brager’s youngest was christened
- 1923, Hans Aanrud, Fortællinger‎^[88], volume I, page 10:
  Den Skinbarlige selv
  the Devil himself
- 1927, Johan Bojer, Samlede verker‎^[89], volume I, page 8:
  den ene [lå] paa nakken av den andre
  one [lay] on top of the other
1. With an adjective denoting a class of people.
  Den fattige trenger også hjelp. ― The poor need help too.
  - 1875, Henrik Ibsen, Digte‎^[90], page 88:
    den fattige sulted, den rige led savn
    the poor starved, the rich suffered want
(archaic or in fixed expressions) the; before a noun without an adjective, sometimes with a name or genitive modifier.
den dag i dag — to this day

Jeg husker det den dag i dag. ― I remember it to this day.

i morgen den dag — as early as tomorrow; tomorrow itself

den Herre Jesus Kristus ― the Lord Jesus Christ
- 1853, Henrik Wergeland, Samlede Skrifter‎^[91], volume III, page 474:
  men hvad tænker damen paa? Er den lady rigtig klog?
  but what is the lady thinking? Is the lady quite sane?
- 1909, Henrik Ibsen, Efterladte Skrifter‎^[92], volume I, page 89:
  den sanger kvad om elskovs ild
  the singer sang of love’s fire
- 1907, J.S. Welhaven, Samlede Digterverker‎^[93], volume III, page 140:
  da svarede den Herrens tolk: Se, jeg staar rede, send mig nu!
  then the Lord’s interpreter answered: Behold, I stand ready; send me now!
- 1918, Gunnar Heiberg, Samlede dramatiske verker‎^[94], volume III, page 23:
  den forræder Gustav Hansen skal offentlig brændemærkes
  that traitor Gustav Hansen shall be publicly branded

Usage notes

The article is normally unstressed. Compare den røde bilen ("the red car") with stressed demonstrative den røde bilen ("that red car").
Ordinary noun phrases normally have both the article and the noun's definite suffix: den gamle stolen ("the old chair"). Names, fixed expressions and some formal or literary phrases may lack the suffix: Den norske kirke ("the Church of Norway").

Related terms

denne (“this”)
dette (“this; neuter”)
disse (“these”)

References

^ Diplomatarium Norvegicum, volume IV, no. 827, 7 May 1425, page 602.

“den” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
“den” in Norwegian Academy Dictionary (NAOB).
“Kan en bruke «den» for «han» og «hun»?” in Språkrådet.

Anagrams

end, ned

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

dan (hrd, High Norwegian)
dei (some eastern dialects)
deinn (palatalized)
(determiner): den her, den der, de hennen, den dennen, den hærren (some dialects)

Etymology

From Old Norse þann, þenn, masculine accusative singular of sá, from Proto-Germanic *sa, from Proto-Indo-European *só.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛnː/

Determiner

den m or f (neuter singular det, plural dei)

(demonstrative determiner) that
Eg vil ha den bilen.
I want that car.

Derived terms

den og den

Article

den m or f (neuter singular det, plural dei)

the; only used if there is an adjective or numeral to the noun
Han køyrde den raude bilen.
He drove the red car.

Usage notes

Usually put preceding the noun. In some rare cases of poetry, the article may come after the noun.
The noun is nearly always in its definite form. Exceptions include fixed expressions and poetry. Attributive adjectives are always in their definite forms.
May be omitted when used with the determiner same, used with an ordinal number, or an adjective denotes an inherent or natural attribute of the thing. Omission occurs more frequently, colloquially, in certain dialects.
same tingen ― [the] same thing

fyrste kvelden ― [the] first night

svarte natta ― [the] dark night

Declension

Norwegian Nynorsk demonstrative pronouns
singular	masculine	neuter
nominative-accusative	den, denn / dann¹	det, dat¹
dative³	deim	di

plural	all genders
nominative	dei
accusative	dei, deim²
dative³	deim
genitive	deira, deires³

¹ Landsmål
² Unofficial today
³ Rare or dialectal
⁴ Obsolete.

Derived terms

Pronoun

den

(demonstrative pronoun) that one
Eg vil ha den.
I want that one.

References

“den” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
“den”, in Norsk Ordbok: Ordbok over det Norske Folkemålet og det Nynorske Skriftmålet (in Norwegian Nynorsk), Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget, 1950–2016, →ISBN.
“den” in Ivar Aasen (1873) Norsk Ordbog med dansk Forklaring

Old Czech

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *dyew-der.

Proto-Balto-Slavic *dein-der.

Proto-Slavic *dьnь

Old Czech den

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *dьnь.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (13^th CE) /ˈdɛn/
IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /ˈdɛn/

Noun

den m inan (diminutive dnek)

day; daytime (period between sunrise and sundown)
day (24 hour period)
(often in the plural) day (unspecified period, particularly in the past)
(in the plural) days (life)
(religion) day; holiday
(religion) day; doomsday

Declension

Declension of den (n-stem reducible)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	den	dni	dnie
genitive	dne	dňú	dní
dative	dni	dnoma	dnóm
accusative	den	dni	dni
vocative	dni	dni	dnie
locative	dni	dňú	dnech
instrumental	dnem	dnoma	dny

This table shows the most common forms around the 13th century.

Descendants

Czech: den

References

Jan Gebauer (1903–1916), “den”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění

Papiamentu

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *de

Proto-Indo-European *-h₁

Proto-Indo-European *déh₁

Proto-Italic *dē

Latin dē

Proto-Indo-European *h₁én

Proto-Indo-European *-teros

Proto-Indo-European *h₁énterosder.

Latin intrō

Late Latin dē intrō

Old Galician-Portuguese dentro

Portuguese dentroder.

▲

Late Latin dē intrō

Spanish dentroder.

▲

Portuguese dentroder.

Kabuverdianu dentuder.

Papiamentu den

Derived from Portuguese dentro, Spanish dentro, and Kabuverdianu dentu.

Preposition

den

Pennsylvania German

Etymology

Compare German den.

Article

den m (definite)

accusative masculine singular of der (“the”)

Declension

	singular			plural
	m	f	n	plural
nominative	der	die	es	die
dative	dem, em	der	dem, em	de
accusative	der, den	die	es	die

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈdɛn/
Audio: (file)
Rhymes: -ɛn
Syllabification: den

Noun

den n

genitive plural of dno

Pumpokol

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Yeniseian *den (“female nipple”).^[1]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛn/

Noun

den (plural unknown)

milk

References

^ Vajda, Edward; Werner, Heinrich (2022), Comparative-Historical Yeniseian Dictionary (Languages of the World/Dictionaries; 79, 80), Muenchen: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, page 199

Russenorsk

Alternative forms

dein, денъ (den)

Etymology

Inherited from Norwegian Nynorsk den or its northern dialectal palatalized form.

Pronunciation

Unknown. Possible examples:

IPA^(key): /dɛnː/ (Norwegian accent)
IPA^(key): /dɛɲː/ (palatalized, Northen Norwegian, attested as dein)

The attested Cyrillic spelling денъ indicates no palatalization. The letter "е" in non-Russian words may have two different ways of pronunciation (as /je/ or /e/). The variant closest to Norwegian pronunciation would be /e/:

IPA^(key): [den], /dɛn/

Pronoun

den

this, that

Usage notes

The pronoun has no conjugated forms, in difference from Norwegian, which conjugates this pronoun after gender and number (e. g. det), which are absent in Russenorsk.

Synonyms

etta

Derived terms

den dag

Spanish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈden/ [ˈd̪ẽn]
Rhymes: -en
Syllabification: den

Verb

den

inflection of dar:
1. third-person plural present subjunctive
2. third-person plural imperative

Sranan Tongo

Alternative forms

dem (archaic)

Etymology

From English them.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /den/

Pronoun

den

they
them

Determiner

den

their (possessive pronoun)

Article

den

the (plural definite article)

Swedish

Alternative forms

then, dhen (obsolete)
ren (colloquial, pronunciation spelling)

Etymology

From Old Swedish þæn, accusative of sā(r), from Old Norse sá, from Proto-Germanic *sa, from Proto-Indo-European *só.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɛnː/
Audio: (file)
IPA^(key): /rɛnː/ (unstressed, informal)
Rhymes: -ɛnː

Pronoun

den c

it (for common gender nouns)
Jag ser Nisses bil. Den är röd.
I see Nisse's car. It is red.

Jag har tappat bort min nyckel. Har du sett den?
I have lost my key. Have you seen it?

Skalbaggen är mycket hungrig. Mata den varje timme.
The beetle is very hungry. Feed it every hour.

Mata'ren varje timme [Common unstressed pronunciation variant – see IPA. /rɛnː/ is especially common in some dialects.]
Feed it every hour

Ge'ren till Nisse [Common unstressed pronunciation variant]
Give it to Nisse

Seruren? ["Ser du den?" – common unstressed pronunciation variant]
Do you see it?
that (for common gender nouns)
Den bilen är röd, men bilen där borta är grön
That car is red, but the car over there is green
1. the one, that one (for common gender nouns)
  Den stora bilen – den som Margit äger – är gul
  The big car – the one that Margit owns – is yellow
  
  – Vilken glass tog du? – Jag tog den med marshmallows.
  – Which ice cream did you have [take]? – I had [took] the one with marshmallows.
  
  – Vilken bil tycker du är finast? – Den (där)! *Pekar*
  – Which car do you think is the prettiest? – That one (there)! *Points* ["Där" (there) is optional, and could also be "här" (here) for example, for a nearby object, like in English]
he, she, whoever, "the one"
Den som lever får se
Time will tell ("He who lives will (gets to) see" – idiomatic)

Den som gräver en grop åt andra faller ofta själv däri
He who digs a pit for others often falls himself therein (proverb based on the Bible – idiomatically old-fashioned language in Swedish as well)

Declension

Swedish personal pronouns
Number	Person		nominative	oblique	possessive
Number	Person		nominative	oblique	common	neuter	plural
singular	first	—	jag	mig, mej³	min	mitt	mina
	second	—	du	dig, dej³	din	ditt	dina
	third	masculine (person)	han	honom, han², en⁵	hans
		feminine (person)	hon	henne, na⁵	hennes
		gender-neutral (person)¹	hen	hen, henom⁷	hens
		common (noun)	den	den	dess
		neuter (noun)	det	det	dess
		indefinite	man or en⁴	en	ens
		reflexive	—	sig, sej³	sin	sitt	sina
plural	first	—	vi	oss	vår, våran²	vårt, vårat²	våra
	second	—	ni	er	er, eran², ers⁶	ert, erat²	era
	second	archaic	I	eder	eder, eders⁶	edert	edra
	third	—	de, dom³	dem, dom³	deras
	third	reflexive	—	sig, sej³	sin	sitt	sina

¹Neologism. Usage has increased since 2010, though it remains limited.

²Informal

³Colloquial pronunciation spelling.

⁴Dialectal, also used lately as an alternative to man, to avoid association to the male gender.

⁵Informal, somewhat dialectal

⁶Formal address

⁷Discouraged by the Swedish Language Council

Article

den c (definite)

the (when an adjective is used with a common gender noun in the definite – det is used for neuter gender nouns, and de for plural nouns, regardless of gender)
en bil ― a car

bilen ― the car

en röd bil ― a red car

den röda bilen ― the red car

röda bilar ― red cars (for comparison – note that "röd" has the same inflection in the definite and plural)

bilen den röda ― the red car [rare, poetic – intuitively, "the car, the red one" / "the car the red"]
- 1971, Evert Taube, “Änglamark”, in Äppelkriget:
  Kalla den Änglamarken eller Himlajorden om du vill. Jorden vi ärvde och lunden den gröna.
  Call it the Angel Ground or the Heaven Earth if you like. The Earth we inherited and the green grove
  (literally, “the grove the green”)
1. the ... one (when the noun is implied, which is an idiomatic construction)
  – Vilken tröja vill du ha? – Den blå.
  – Which shirt do you want? – The blue one.
  
  – Vilken glass vill du ha? – Den största.
  – Which ice cream do you want? – The biggest (one).

Usage notes

"The [adjective] [noun]" is expressed as "den/det/de (common gender, neuter gender, and plural, respectively) [adjective inflected for definite] [noun inflected for definite]." For example, "smaskig" (yummy) and "hamburgare" (hamburger – common gender) turns into "den smaskiga hamburgaren" (the yummy-definite hamburger-definite), "röd" (red) and "hus" (house – neuter gender) turns into "det röda huset" (the red-definite house-definite), and "snabb" (fast) and "bilar" (cars) turns into "de snabba bilarna" (the fast-definite cars-definite). "Den/det/de" is not optional, except often being left out in proper nouns and other lexicalized noun phrases with an adjective that are in the definite (giving "smaskiga hamburgaren" something of a "pub name" feel) – see de for examples.

The definite form of an adjective is identical to the plural form except optionally having "-e" instead of "-a" in the singular for nouns whose natural gender is masculine. For example, "lång" (tall) and "man" (man) turns into either "den långe mannen" or "den långa mannen," while "lång" (tall) and "kvinna" (woman) can only be expressed as "den långa kvinnan." Present participles – like in "den sjungande kvinnan" (the singing woman) and "de simmande fiskarna" (the swimming fishes) – do not inflect, and stay the same in indefinite, definite, singular, and plural noun phrases.

The construction above is called "double definiteness," since it can be considered redundant. It also occurs in Norwegian and Faroese, but not in Danish, where "the red house" is "det røde hus."

Related terms

References

“den”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
“den”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
“den”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)

Anagrams

ned

Tanacross

Etymology

Compare Navajo dį́į́ʼ, Ahtna dencʼih.

Numeral

den

four

References

Arnold, Irene Solomon, Holton, Gary, and Thoman, Rick (2009), Tanacross Learners' Dictionary, Alaska Native Knowledge Network

References

Begay, Kayla Rae (2017), Wailaki Grammar, University of California, Berkeley, page 86

Zhuang

Etymology

From Mandarin 電／电 (diàn).

Pronunciation

(Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /teːn˧˥/ (new Mandarin borrowing)
Tone numbers: den⁵
Hyphenation: den

Noun

den (1957–1982 spelling den)

electricity

[1] Kotey, Paul A. (1998), Twi-English/English-Twi Dictionary‎^[1], New York: Hippocrene Books, →ISBN

[2] Dolphyne, Florence Abena (1996), A Comprehensive Course in Twi (Asante) for the Non-Twi Learner‎^[2], Accra, Ghana: Ghana Universities Press, →ISBN, page 123

[3] Diplomatarium Norvegicum, volume IV, no. 827, 7 May 1425, page 602.

[4] Vajda, Edward; Werner, Heinrich (2022), Comparative-Historical Yeniseian Dictionary (Languages of the World/Dictionaries; 79, 80), Muenchen: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, page 199

[1]

[2]

[1]

[1]

	Singular	Plural
1^st person	saya¹ aku³	kita⁴ kami^{2 & 5} kita orang^{3 & 5}
2^nd person	awak¹ anda² awda⁸ (eng)kau³ kamu³	(2^nd person) + semua⁶ kalian² (eng)kau orang³
3^rd person	dia ia beliau⁷ -nya²	mereka² dia orang³

Danish personal pronouns
Number	Person	Type	Nominative	Oblique	Possessive
Number	Person	Type	Nominative	Oblique	common	neuter	plural
Singular	First	–	jeg	mig	min	mit	mine
	Second	modern / informal	du	dig	din	dit	dine
	Second	formal (uncommon)	De	Dem	Deres
	Third	masculine (person)	han	ham	hans
		feminine (person)	hun	hende	hendes
		common (noun)	den		dens
		neuter (noun)	det		dets
		indefinite	man	en	ens
		reflexive	–	sig	sin	sit	sine
Plural	First	modern	vi	os	vores
	First	archaic / formal	vi	os	vor	vort	vore
	Second	–	I	jer	jeres
	Third	–	de	dem	deres
	Third	reflexive	–	sig	deres

Norwegian Bokmål personal pronouns
Number	Person	Type	Nominative	Oblique	Possessive
Number	Person	Type	Nominative	Oblique	masculine	feminine	neuter	plural
Singular	First	–	jeg	meg	min	mi	mitt	mine
	Second	general	du	deg	din	di	ditt	dine
	Second	formal (rare)	De	Dem	Deres
	Third	masculine (person)	han	ham / han	hans
		feminine (person)	hun	henne	hennes
		masculine (noun)	den		dens
		feminine (noun)	den		dens
		neuter (noun)	det		dets
		reflexive	–	seg	sin	si	sitt	sine
Plural	First	–	vi	oss	vår		vårt	våre
	Second	general	dere		deres
	Second	formal (very rare)	De	Dem	Deres
	Third	general	de	dem	deres
	Third	reflexive	–	seg	sin	si	sitt	sine

Translingual

Etymology

Symbol

English

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

Etymology 2

Noun

Etymology 3

Noun

Derived terms

Etymology 4

Noun

Etymology 5

Adverb

See also

Anagrams

Afrikaans

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Ahtna

Etymology

Root

Stem set

Derived terms

References

Akan

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Adjective

Related terms

References

Bambara

Noun

Derived terms

Verb

Breton

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Mutation

Catalan

Verb

Chungli Ao

Etymology

Postposition

Further reading

Cimbrian

Pronoun

Determiner

See also

Further reading

Cornish

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Mutation

References

Czech

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

Declension

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Noun

Etymology 3

Noun

Further reading

Anagrams

Danish

Etymology

Pronunciation

Article