dungeon

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A dark underground room or cell, especially in a castle, used in the past to keep prisoners.

   Grammar: Countable: use 'a dungeon' or 'the dungeons'.

   Patterns

   • in a dungeon
   • throw someone into a dungeon
   • the castle dungeons

   The prisoners were kept in a cold, damp dungeon beneath the castle.

   Legends say the king threw his enemies into the dungeon and forgot them.

   Visitors can tour the old dungeon and see the heavy iron chains.

2. 2nouncountablefigurative

   In fantasy games and stories, a dangerous underground area full of monsters and treasure.

   Grammar: Often used in role-playing games; can be part of a name like 'the Dungeon of Doom'.

   Patterns

   • explore a dungeon
   • clear a dungeon
   • dungeon master

   The players spent hours exploring a dungeon filled with traps and treasure.

   In this game, you build a party of heroes and fight through dungeons.

   The dungeon master described a dark corridor with a locked door.

Word forms

Common combinations

castle dungeon

The castle dungeon was carved out of solid rock.

dungeon cell

Each dungeon cell had only a small window near the ceiling.

throw someone into a dungeon

The tyrant threw rebels into the dungeon without trial.

dungeon master

As dungeon master, she created the entire adventure for her friends.

Synonyms and how they differ

cell

A cell is a small room for a prisoner, usually in a prison or police station; a dungeon is specifically underground and often in a castle.

oubliette

An oubliette is a very narrow dungeon with a trapdoor at the top, designed to make escape impossible; it is a rare, historical term.

Commonly confused: dungeon or dungeon?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “dungeon”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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