bane

[ beyn ]

noun

1. a person or thing that ruins or spoils:

   Gambling was the bane of his existence.

2. a deadly poison (often used in combination, as in the names of poisonous plants):

   wolfsbane;

   henbane.

3. death; destruction; ruin.
4. Obsolete. that which causes death or destroys life:

   entrapped and drowned beneath the watery bane.

bane

¹

/ beɪn /

noun

1. a person or thing that causes misery or distress (esp in the phrase bane of one's life )
2. something that causes death or destruction
3. 1. a fatal poison
   2. ( in combination )

      ratsbane

4. archaic.
   ruin or distress

bane

²

/ beɪn; ben /

noun

1. a Scot word for bone

Word History and Origins

Origin of bane¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English bana “slayer”; cognate with Old Norse bani “death, murderer,” Old Frisian bona “murder,” Old Saxon bano “murderer,” Old High German bano “slayer,” bana “death”; akin to Armenian ǰnǰel “to destroy,” Greek theínein “to strike,” Latin -fendere “to strike,” Persian zahr “poison,” Polish gonić “to pursue,” Sanskrit hánti “to strike”

Word History and Origins

Origin of bane¹

Old English bana ; related to Old Norse bani death, Old High German bano destruction, death

Example Sentences

Bane said this is the real reason for SIGAR reluctance to let the Shadman case go.

From The Daily Beast

Hockney saw the object that would become the bane of office secretaries everywhere as bringing him closer to his art.

From The Daily Beast

Zac kept walking around the set doing Bane impersonations—“I was born in the dark!”

From The Daily Beast

This problem has a long history and is the bane of drug prevention experts.

From The Daily Beast

The agenda is likely to focus on Syria, which has been a bane to the pope since taking office last March.

From The Daily Beast

Seems as if K. was beginning to come up against those political forces which have ever been a British Commander's bane.

From Project Gutenberg

Love of money was throughout the bane of Loftus, and went far to neutralise the good effects of his learning and eloquence.

From Project Gutenberg

He is presumed here to have been killed by Hother, who is therefore called “the bane of Gelder.”

From Project Gutenberg

It might be good for hogs, but it was a form of monks' bane, as it were.

From Project Gutenberg

Anything with my hands but I bane not much good on head work.

From Project Gutenberg