gang
1 Americannoun
-
gangs
plural
-
a group or band.
A gang of boys gathered around the winning pitcher.
-
a group of youngsters or adolescents who associate closely, often exclusively, for social reasons, especially such a group engaging in delinquent behavior.
-
a group of people with compatible tastes or mutual interests who gather together for social reasons.
I'm throwing a party for the gang I bowl with.
-
a group of persons working together; squad; shift.
a gang of laborers.
- Synonyms:
- team
-
a group of persons associated for some criminal or other antisocial purpose.
a gang of thieves.
-
a set of tools, electronic components or circuits, oars, etc., arranged to work together or simultaneously.
-
a group of identical or related items.
verb (used with object)
-
to arrange in groups or sets; form into a gang.
to gang illustrations for more economical printing on one sheet.
-
to attack in a gang.
verb (used without object)
verb phrase
verb (used without object)
noun
-
a group of people who associate together or act as an organized body, esp for criminal or illegal purposes
-
an organized group of workmen
-
a herd of buffaloes or elks or a pack of wild dogs
-
a group of shearers who travel to different shearing sheds, shearing, classing, and baling wool
-
-
a series of similar tools arranged to work simultaneously in parallel
-
( as modifier )
a gang saw
-
verb
-
to form into, become part of, or act as a gang
-
(tr) electronics to mount (two or more components, such as variable capacitors) on the same shaft, permitting adjustment by a single control
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of gang1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English gang, gong, Old English gang, gong “manner of going, way, passage”; cognate with Old High German gang, Old Norse gangr, Gothic gagg; cf. gang 2
Origin of gang2
First recorded before 900; Middle English gangen, Old English gangan, gongan; cognate with Old High German gangan, Old Norse ganga, Gothic gaggan; cf. gang 1 (noun derivative from same root)
Explanation
A gang is an association or group of criminals. Often, members of one gang will fight violently with another gang. People join gangs for the sense of belonging, as well as for protection by other members. A gang usually claims an area as its territory and defends it against other gangs or unaffiliated criminals. You can also use gang for a group of friends or workers: "A whole gang of us went to the movies together." The Old English root, gang, means "journey." Today's definition comes from the idea of "a band of people traveling together."
Vocabulary lists containing gang
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Death Row is a label strongly associated with the Mob Pirus gang.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
The boy was a gang leader in a Caracas high school and a member of an outlawed Venezuelan Communist youth group.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Parma chief of police Andrea Pagliaro told AFP the investigation centred around a gang of nine Moldavian suspects.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
For nearly three decades, a onetime Compton gang leader named Duane “Keffe D” Davis has been one of the most vocal theorists about one of the most debated celebrity killings ever.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
The closest thing we’ve had to a gang war was when the musical theater kids and the dance kids tried to out-flash-mob each other.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
On Aug. 12, a top police official told the town the gangs were planning the worst attack yet, said a community leader.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
"Years later, we won back the walls from the gangs," said the muralist who considers art a "magical tool" for "social transformation."
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
In its statement, DHS denied HSI has neglected its core mission, saying the agency has increased its efforts to combat criminal cartels, gangs and drug traffickers in response to multiple Trump executive orders.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
Cakrani, Shehu’s lawyer, said Shehu was attacked by pro-communist gangs for his anticommunist views.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Some wore white hospital garb; others came off work gangs wearing blue dungarees.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
