noun
jungle
JUHNG-gl
noun
1
A dense tropical forest thick with trees, vines, and wildlife.
"The explorers hacked their way through the jungle with machetes."
"Monkeys called to each other deep in the jungle."
2
A situation or environment seen as chaotic, cutthroat, or lawless.
"Office politics there is an absolute jungle."
"It's a jungle out there once you leave the safety of the office."
How to Use Jungle
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA thick tropical forest, or by extension any chaotic, every-person-for-themselves situation.
Common pairings
deep in the jungle
jungle warfare
concrete jungle
Word Forms
jungles plural
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Etymology
From Hindi/Sanskrit jangala, originally meaning rough, uncultivated land, before it came to mean dense tropical forest in English.