density
noun
den·si·ty
| \ ˈden(t)-sə-tē
\
\
plural densities
Definition of density
1
: the quality or state of being dense
measures of traffic density the density of the cake felt that the candidate's density on the subject of equality was alarming the density of her prose
2
mathematics
: the quantity per unit volume (see volume entry 1 sense 2), unit area (see area sense 1), or unit length: such as
b
chemistry
: the distribution of a quantity (such as mass, electricity, or energy) per unit usually of space (such as length, area, or volume)
c
: the average number of individuals or units per space unit
a population density of 500 per square mile a housing density of 10 houses per acre
3 physics
a
: the degree of opacity (see opacity sense 2) of a translucent medium
the fog's density
b
: the common logarithm of the opacity
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Synonyms for density
Synonyms
consistence, consistency, thickness, viscidity, viscosity
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Examples of density in a Sentence
We were surprised by the fog's density.
the density of her writing style
These instruments are used for measuring the density of the atmosphere.
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Recent Examples on the Web
Under his rule, Turkmenistan has become the record holder for titles like world’s largest Ferris wheel, the highest density of buildings with white marble cladding, and world’s largest horse head statue. — Melissa Locker, Time, "John Oliver Bakes a Very, Very Large Cake to Annoy Turkmenistan and Guinness World Records," 12 Aug. 2019 The area around the Harborside site on the Far South Side has the lowest population density of the five contenders and is the closet to northwest Indiana's casinos, including those just over the border in Hammond. — Meghan Kelly, chicagotribune.com, "Where will Chicago's first casino land? Here's how the 5 proposed sites compare.," 9 Aug. 2019 The same pattern repeats itself in Japan: Okinawa has the greatest density of super-old people, despite having one of the lowest life expectancies in the country and generally poor health outcomes. — Kelsey Piper, Vox, "Study: many of the “oldest” people in the world may not be as old as we think," 8 Aug. 2019 Higher still will be the densities of rocky worlds made principally of silicates. — The Economist, "Astronomers are probing faraway planets with greater sophistication," 3 Aug. 2019 According to the Orange County Register, Southern California has the greatest density of dolphins per square mile in the world, with about 450,000 dolphins. — Andrea Romano, Sunset Magazine, "Watch This Spectacular Video of a Massive “Stampede” of Dolphins Near Laguna Beach," 30 July 2019 Officials said young professionals prefer diverse housing styles in more urban settings because the higher density can make neighborhoods more dynamic. — John Tuohy, Indianapolis Star, "Noblesville developers are moving away from single-family homes," 16 July 2019 Researchers say as many as 1,200 mice can be found per acre during peak breeding season, the highest rodent density of any island in the world. — Peter Fimrite, SFChronicle.com, "U.S. wildlife agency pulls plan to poison mice on Farallon Islands — for now," 10 July 2019 Even in areas where his team has found high densities of sharks, like the Atlantic from Chatham to Provincetown and in eastern Cape Cod Bay, the statistical chance of a shark attack remains quite small. — Neil Swidey, BostonGlobe.com, "We’re afraid of sharks. But maybe we’re not afraid enough.," 9 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'density.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for density
density
noun
English Language Learners Definition of density
: the quality of having parts that are close together
: the quality of being difficult to see through
: the quality of being difficult to understand
See the full definition for density in the English Language Learners Dictionary
density
noun
den·si·ty
| \ ˈden-sə-tē
\
\
plural densities
Kids Definition of density
1
: the condition of having parts that are close together
the jungle's density
2
: the amount of something in a specified volume or area
high population density
density
noun
den·si·ty
| \ ˈden(t)-sət-ē, -stē
\
\
plural densities
Medical Definition of density
1
: the quantity per unit volume, unit area, or unit length: as
a
: the mass of a substance per unit volume
b
: the distribution of a quantity (as mass, electricity, or energy) per unit usually of space
c
: the average number of individuals or units per space unit
a population density of 500 per square mile
2a
: the degree of opacity of a translucent medium
b
: absorbance
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