bang
noun · verb · adverb
Simple meaning
A sudden very loud noise.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
bangIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈbæŋ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A sudden very loud noise
A sudden percussive noise.
A strike upon an object causing such a noise.
An explosion.
An offbeat figure typical of reggae songs and played on guitar and piano.
chiefly us
The symbol!, known as an exclamation point.
verb
intransitive
To make sudden loud noises, and often repeatedly, especially by exploding or hitting something.
with "in"
To hammer or to hit anything hard.
transitive
To cut squarely across, as the tail of a horse, or a person's forelock; to cut (the hair).
usslang
To gangbang; to participate in street gang criminal activity.
adverb
Directly
With a sudden impact.
Precisely.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
More ways to use bang
- “One of them banged the sash of the window nearest my bed.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
A continuing very loud noise.
Pork sausage.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Damage or destroy as if by violence.
Play loudly.
In a careless or reckless manner.
Directly or immediately.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
A small high-velocity shell.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.