den vs study

den

noun
  • A comfortable room not used for formal entertaining. 

  • Synonym of fort (“structure improvised from furniture, etc. for playing games.”) 

  • A group of Cub Scouts of the same age who work on projects together. 

  • A small cavern or hollow place in the side of a hill, or among rocks; especially, a cave used by a wild animal for shelter or concealment. 

  • A squalid or wretched place; a haunt. 

verb
  • To ensconce or hide oneself in (or as in) a den. 

study

noun
  • A room in a house intended for reading and writing; traditionally the private room of the male head of household. 

  • The human face, bearing an expression which the observer finds amusingly typical of a particular emotion or state of mind. 

  • Mental effort to acquire knowledge or learning. 

  • Any particular branch of learning that is studied; any object of attentive consideration. 

  • An endgame problem composed for artistic merit, where one side is to play for a win or for a draw. 

  • An artwork made in order to practise or demonstrate a subject or technique. 

  • An academic publication. 

  • A piece for special practice; an étude. 

  • The act of studying or examining; examination. 

  • One who commits a theatrical part to memory. 

verb
  • To endeavor diligently; to be zealous. 

  • To acquire knowledge on a subject with the intention of applying it in practice. 

  • To look at minutely. 

  • To review materials already learned in order to make sure one does not forget them, usually in preparation for an examination. 

  • To take a course or courses on a subject. 

  • To fix the mind closely upon a subject; to dwell upon anything in thought; to muse; to ponder. 

How often have the words den and study occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )