"lion's den" meaning in English

See lion's den in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Audio: En-au-lion's den.ogg Forms: lions' dens [plural]
Etymology: From Daniel in the lions' den, Chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel. Head templates: {{en-noun|lions' dens}} lion's den (plural lions' dens)
  1. (idiomatic) Any dangerous or frightening place. Tags: idiomatic Translations (a dangerous or frightening place): fossa dels lleons (Catalan), 龍潭 /龙潭 (lóngtán) (english: dragon's pool) (Chinese Mandarin), 虎穴 (hǔxué) (english: tiger's den) (Chinese Mandarin), hol van de leeuw [neuter] (Dutch), gueule du loup [feminine] (French), fosse aux lions (French), Höhle des Löwen [feminine] (German), antro [masculine] (Italian), tana [feminine] (Italian), covo [masculine] (Italian), fossa del leone [feminine] (Italian), fossa dei leoni (Italian), 虎穴 (koketsu) (english: tiger's den) (Japanese), w paszczy lwa (Polish), cova dos leões (Portuguese), groapa cu lei (Romanian), во́лчье ло́гово (vólčʹje lógovo) (english: wolf's lair) [neuter] (Russian), foso de los leones (Spanish), boca del lobo (english: mouth of the wolf) [feminine] (Spanish), lejonkula (Swedish), kurtlar sofrası (Turkish)
    Sense id: en-lion's_den-en-noun-jP1lOq2n Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with entries, Terms with Catalan translations, Terms with Dutch translations, Terms with French translations, Terms with German translations, Terms with Italian translations, Terms with Japanese translations, Terms with Mandarin translations, Terms with Polish translations, Terms with Portuguese translations, Terms with Romanian translations, Terms with Russian translations, Terms with Spanish translations, Terms with Swedish translations, Terms with Turkish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 49 51 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 52 48 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 51 49 Disambiguation of Terms with Catalan translations: 59 41 Disambiguation of Terms with Dutch translations: 57 43 Disambiguation of Terms with French translations: 57 43 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 57 43 Disambiguation of Terms with Italian translations: 58 42 Disambiguation of Terms with Japanese translations: 58 42 Disambiguation of Terms with Mandarin translations: 57 43 Disambiguation of Terms with Polish translations: 58 42 Disambiguation of Terms with Portuguese translations: 59 41 Disambiguation of Terms with Romanian translations: 59 41 Disambiguation of Terms with Russian translations: 58 42 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 51 49 Disambiguation of Terms with Swedish translations: 59 41 Disambiguation of Terms with Turkish translations: 59 41 Disambiguation of 'a dangerous or frightening place': 99 1
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lion, den. Synonyms: dragon's den, lions' den, lion's-den [archaic], lions'-den [archaic]
    Sense id: en-lion's_den-en-noun-tH17yvT5 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Spanish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 49 51 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 52 48 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 41 59 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 51 49 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 51 49

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

{
  "etymology_text": "From Daniel in the lions' den, Chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "lions' dens",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "lions' dens"
      },
      "expansion": "lion's den (plural lions' dens)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "49 51",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "52 48",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "59 41",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Catalan translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "57 43",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Dutch translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "57 43",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with French translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "57 43",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "58 42",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Italian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "58 42",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "57 43",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Mandarin translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "58 42",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "59 41",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Portuguese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "59 41",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Romanian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "58 42",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "59 41",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "59 41",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Turkish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter XL, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:",
          "text": "Mrs. Bowls cautioned her lodger against venturing into the lion's den, \"wherein you will rue it, Miss B., mark my words, and as sure as my name is Bowls.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1913, Sax Rohmer, chapter 24, in The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu:",
          "text": "Despite the girl's assurance, we knew that proximity to the sinister Chinaman must be fraught with danger. We stood, not in the lion's den, but in the serpent's lair.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2012, Katy Perry, Max Martin, Bonnie McKee, Dr. Luke, Cirkut (lyrics and music), “Wide Awake”, in Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection, performed by Katy Perry:",
          "text": "Yeah, I am born again / Out of the lion's den / I don't have to pretend / (And it's too late) / The story's over now, the end",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any dangerous or frightening place."
      ],
      "id": "en-lion's_den-en-noun-jP1lOq2n",
      "links": [
        [
          "dangerous",
          "dangerous"
        ],
        [
          "frightening",
          "frightening"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Any dangerous or frightening place."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "ca",
          "lang": "Catalan",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "fossa dels lleons"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "cmn",
          "english": "dragon's pool",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "lóngtán",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "龍潭 /龙潭"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "cmn",
          "english": "tiger's den",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "hǔxué",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "虎穴"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "hol van de leeuw"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "gueule du loup"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "fosse aux lions"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "Höhle des Löwen"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "antro"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "tana"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "covo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "fossa del leone"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "fossa dei leoni"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "ja",
          "english": "tiger's den",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "koketsu",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "虎穴"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "w paszczy lwa"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "cova dos leões"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "groapa cu lei"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "ru",
          "english": "wolf's lair",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "vólčʹje lógovo",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "во́лчье ло́гово"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "foso de los leones"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "es",
          "english": "mouth of the wolf",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "boca del lobo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "lejonkula"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "tr",
          "lang": "Turkish",
          "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
          "word": "kurtlar sofrası"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "49 51",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "52 48",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "41 59",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lion, den."
      ],
      "id": "en-lion's_den-en-noun-tH17yvT5",
      "links": [
        [
          "lion",
          "lion#English"
        ],
        [
          "den",
          "den#English"
        ]
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "_dis1": "0 100",
          "word": "dragon's den"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "0 100",
          "word": "lions' den"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "0 100",
          "tags": [
            "archaic"
          ],
          "word": "lion's-den"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "0 100",
          "tags": [
            "archaic"
          ],
          "word": "lions'-den"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-lion's den.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/65/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Book of Daniel",
    "Daniel in the lions' den"
  ],
  "word": "lion's den"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms derived from the Bible",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with Catalan translations",
    "Terms with Dutch translations",
    "Terms with French translations",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Italian translations",
    "Terms with Japanese translations",
    "Terms with Mandarin translations",
    "Terms with Polish translations",
    "Terms with Portuguese translations",
    "Terms with Romanian translations",
    "Terms with Russian translations",
    "Terms with Spanish translations",
    "Terms with Swedish translations",
    "Terms with Turkish translations"
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Daniel in the lions' den, Chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "lions' dens",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "lions' dens"
      },
      "expansion": "lion's den (plural lions' dens)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English idioms",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter XL, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:",
          "text": "Mrs. Bowls cautioned her lodger against venturing into the lion's den, \"wherein you will rue it, Miss B., mark my words, and as sure as my name is Bowls.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1913, Sax Rohmer, chapter 24, in The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu:",
          "text": "Despite the girl's assurance, we knew that proximity to the sinister Chinaman must be fraught with danger. We stood, not in the lion's den, but in the serpent's lair.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2012, Katy Perry, Max Martin, Bonnie McKee, Dr. Luke, Cirkut (lyrics and music), “Wide Awake”, in Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection, performed by Katy Perry:",
          "text": "Yeah, I am born again / Out of the lion's den / I don't have to pretend / (And it's too late) / The story's over now, the end",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any dangerous or frightening place."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "dangerous",
          "dangerous"
        ],
        [
          "frightening",
          "frightening"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Any dangerous or frightening place."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lion, den."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "lion",
          "lion#English"
        ],
        [
          "den",
          "den#English"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-lion's den.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/65/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/En-au-lion%27s_den.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "dragon's den"
    },
    {
      "word": "lions' den"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "word": "lion's-den"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "word": "lions'-den"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "ca",
      "lang": "Catalan",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "fossa dels lleons"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "english": "dragon's pool",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "lóngtán",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "龍潭 /龙潭"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "english": "tiger's den",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "hǔxué",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "虎穴"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "hol van de leeuw"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "gueule du loup"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "fosse aux lions"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "Höhle des Löwen"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "antro"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "tana"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "covo"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "fossa del leone"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "fossa dei leoni"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "english": "tiger's den",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "koketsu",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "虎穴"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "w paszczy lwa"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "cova dos leões"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "groapa cu lei"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "english": "wolf's lair",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "vólčʹje lógovo",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "во́лчье ло́гово"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "foso de los leones"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "english": "mouth of the wolf",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "boca del lobo"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "lejonkula"
    },
    {
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "a dangerous or frightening place",
      "word": "kurtlar sofrası"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Book of Daniel",
    "Daniel in the lions' den"
  ],
  "word": "lion's den"
}

Download raw JSONL data for lion's den meaning in English (5.5kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-01-15 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-01-01 using wiktextract (b941637 and 4230888). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.