den·i·zen (d
n
-z
n)
n.
1. An inhabitant; a resident: denizens of Monte Carlo.
2. One that frequents a particular place: a bar and its denizens.
3. Ecology An animal or a plant naturalized in a region.
4. Chiefly British A foreigner who is granted rights of residence and sometimes of citizenship.
tr.v. den·i·zened, den·i·zen·ing, den·i·zens Chiefly British
To make a denizen of; grant rights of residence to.
[Middle English denisein, from Anglo-Norman denzein, from deinz, within, from Late Latin deintus, from within; see dedans.]
den
i·zen·ation n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
denizen
Collins Essential Thesaurus 2nd Edition 2006 © HarperCollins Publishers 2005, 2006