density

/ˈdɛnsədi/

/ˈdɛnsɪti/

Other forms: densities

Density describes how compact or concentrated something is. For example, suppose you have two boxes, one large and one small. However, they both weigh the same. That means the small box has a higher density than the large box.

Density also tells how concentrated or crowded something is. You may have heard of population density. In a city, there are many people packed into a small area, giving it a high population density. In a rural area, there are more fields or wooded areas between houses. That means there are fewer people living in a larger area, which is why it has a low population density.

Definitions of density

1. noun

   the amount per unit size
   synonyms: denseness

   types:

   bits per inch, bpi

   a measure of how densely information is packed on a storage medium

   flux, flux density

   (physics) the number of changes in energy flow across a given surface per unit area

   absorbance, optical density, photographic density, transmission density

   (physics) a measure of the extent to which a substance transmits light or other electromagnetic radiation

   low density, rarity, tenuity

   a rarified quality

   relative density

   the ratio of the density of something to the density of a standard

   specific gravity

   the density of a substance relative to the density of water

   vapor density, vapour density

   the density of a gas relative to the density of hydrogen

   type of:

   compactness

   the consistency of a compact solid
2. noun

   the spatial property of being crowded together
   synonyms: compactness, concentration, denseness, tightness

   type of:

   spacing, spatial arrangement

   the property possessed by an array of things that have space between them