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pennant

American  
[pen-uhnt] / ˈpɛn ənt /

noun

pennants plural
  1. a long, tapering flag or burgee of distinctive form and special significance, borne on naval or other vessels and used in signaling or for identification.

  2. any relatively long, tapering flag.

  3. a flag serving as an emblem of victory or championship, especially in baseball.

  4. Music. hook.

  5. Nautical. pendant.


pennant British  
/ ˈpɛnənt /

noun

  1. a type of pennon, esp one flown from vessels as identification or for signalling

    1. a flag serving as an emblem of championship in certain sports

    2. ( as modifier )

      pennant cricket

  2. nautical another word for pendant

  3. same as flag 1

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of pennant

First recorded in 1605–15; blend of pennon and pendant

Explanation

A pennant is a long flag that tapers at one end. You might see a pennant flying on a navy ship, being waved in the crowd of spectators at a baseball game, or hanging on a sporty kid’s bedroom wall. Nautical pennants were the original triangular or tapered flags, and they are still flown on most active warships. Sporting pennants also have a long history, and were once commonly given as prizes or trophies and waved by fans in the stands at high school and college sporting events. Sports teams can still win a pennant, but pennants are often purchased as souvenirs at games and wind up on fans’ walls.

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Vocabulary lists containing pennant

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.

Pennant races always had the potential to get a little hairy, and these days that’s not always about late-inning rallies, fluke bounces or the questionable call by an umpire.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2025

He was well-known in the community and his life was documented in a book by Cass Pennant entitled One-eyed Baz - The Story of Barrington 'Zulu' Patterson, One of Britain's Deadliest Men.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2022

Officer Pennant has since recovered from the shooting and was released from St. Barnabas Hospital, where he was greeted by the applause of his colleagues and hospital staff.

From Fox News • Feb. 3, 2022

Price: ~25 Oxford Pennant Lapgear lap desk Working from home does not mean you have to have a crazy desk setup.

From The Verge • Nov. 9, 2020

Something called London by somebody called Pennant, six volumes bound in red leather—massive books, two feet tall.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

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