hanging

[ hang-ing ]
See synonyms for: hanginghangings on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. the act, an instance, or the form of capital punishment carried out by suspending one by the neck from a gallows, gibbet, or the like, until dead.

  2. Often hangings. something that hangs or is hung on the walls of a room, as a drapery or tapestry.

  1. a suspending or temporary attaching, as of a painting: a careless hanging of pictures.

adjective
  1. punishable by, deserving, or causing death by hanging: a hanging crime; a hanging offense.

  2. inclined to inflict death by hanging: a hanging jury.

  1. suspended; pendent; overhanging: a hanging cliff.

  2. situated on a steep slope or at a height: a hanging garden.

  3. directed downward: a hanging look.

  4. made, holding, or suitable for a hanging object.

Origin of hanging

1
1250–1300; Middle English (noun, adj.), Old English hangande (adj.) See hang, -ing1, -ing2

Other words from hanging

  • hang·ing·ly, adverb
  • un·hang·ing, adjective

Words Nearby hanging

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use hanging in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hanging

hanging

/ (ˈhæŋɪŋ) /


noun
    • the putting of a person to death by suspending the body by the neck from a noose

    • (as modifier): a hanging offence

  1. (often plural) a decorative textile such as a tapestry or drapery hung on a wall or over a window

  1. the act of a person or thing that hangs

adjective
  1. not supported from below; suspended

  2. undecided; still under discussion

  1. inclining or projecting downwards; overhanging

  2. situated on a steep slope or in a high place

  3. (prenominal) given to issuing harsh sentences, esp death sentences: a hanging judge

  4. Northern English informal unpleasant

  5. chess See hanging pawn

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012