bang

¹ American  

[bang] / bæŋ /

noun

1. a loud, sudden, explosive noise, as the discharge of a gun.

2. a resounding stroke or blow.

   a nasty bang on the head.

   Synonyms:

   cuff, bash, sock, wallop, box, clout, smack

3. Informal. a sudden movement or show of energy.

   He started with a bang.

4. energy; vitality; spirit.

   The bang has gone out of my work.

5. Informal. sudden or intense pleasure; thrill; excitement.

   a big bang out of seeing movies.

6. Slang: Vulgar. an act or instance of sexual intercourse.

7. Printing and Computer Slang. an exclamation point.

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verb (used with object)

1. to strike or beat resoundingly; pound.

   to bang a door.

2. to hit or bump painfully.

   to bang one's ankle on a chair leg.

3. to throw or set down roughly; slam.

   He banged the plates on the table.

4. Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse with.

verb (used without object)

1. to strike violently or noisily.

   to bang on the door.

2. to make a loud, sudden, explosive noise like that of a violent blow.

   The guns banged all night.

3. Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse.

adverb

1. suddenly and loudly; abruptly or violently.

   She fell bang against the wall.

2. precisely; directly; right.

   He stood bang in the middle of the flower bed.

verb phrase

1. bang up to damage.

   A passing car banged up our fender.

2. bang into to collide with; bump into.

   The truck skidded on the ice and banged into a parked car.

idioms

1. bang to rights, dead to rights.

   They caught us bang to rights, so there was no point pretending we were innocent.

2. bang off, immediately; right away.

3. bang on, terrific; marvelous; just right.

   That hat is absolutely bang on.

bang ² American  

[bang] / bæŋ /

noun

1. Usually bangs. a fringe of hair combed or brushed forward over the forehead.

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verb (used with object)

1. to cut (the hair) so as to form a fringe over the forehead.

2. to dock (the tail of a horse or dog).

bang ³ American  

[bang] / bæŋ /

noun

1. bhang.

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bang ¹ British  

/ bæŋ /

noun

1. a short loud explosive noise, as of the bursting of a balloon or the report of a gun

2. a hard blow or knock, esp a noisy one; thump

   he gave the ball a bang

3. informal a startling or sudden effect

   he realized with a bang that he was late

4. slang an injection of heroin or other narcotic

5. taboo an act of sexual intercourse

6. slang to experience a thrill or excitement from

7. successfully

   the party went with a bang

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verb

1. to hit or knock, esp with a loud noise; bump

   to bang one's head

2. to move noisily or clumsily

   to bang about the house

3. to close (a door, window, etc) or (of a door, etc) be closed noisily; slam

4. (tr) to cause to move by hitting vigorously

   he banged the ball over the fence

5. to make or cause to make a loud noise, as of an explosion

6. (tr)

   1. to cause (stock prices) to fall by rapid selling

   2. to sell rapidly in (a stock market), thus causing prices to fall

7. taboo to have sexual intercourse with

8. slang (intr) to inject heroin, etc

9. informal value for money

   this option offers more bang for your buck

10. informal that is the end of

    bang goes my job in Wapping

11. to try to achieve something impossible

adverb

1. with a sudden impact or effect

   bang went his hopes of winning

   the car drove bang into a lamp-post

2. precisely

   bang in the middle of the road

3. slang caught red-handed

4. to burst, shut, etc, with a loud noise See also bang up

bang ² British  

/ bæŋ /

noun

1. a fringe or section of hair cut straight across the forehead

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verb

1. to cut (the hair) in such a style

2. to dock (the tail of a horse, etc)

bang ³ British  

/ bæŋ /

noun

1. a variant spelling of bhang

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bang More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bang

• beat (bang) one's head against the wall
• get a bang out of
• go over big (with a bang)
• more bang for the buck

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Etymology

Origin of bang¹

First recorded in 1540–50; 1930–35 bang ¹ for def. 5; compare Old Norse banga ”to beat, hammer,” Low German bangen “to strike, beat,” German dialect banken; perhaps originally imitative

Origin of bang²

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; short for bangtail

Explanation

A bang is a loud noise, like a door slamming or something heavy being dropped on a wood floor. Hearing a bang outside your house at night might make your dog start barking. The sharp sound of a bang might be made by someone pounding on your front door, or two cars colliding. A bang can also be a painful physical knock, like a bang on your head when you crash your bike. You can use it as a verb as well: "Don't bang your laptop down on the table — you'll break it!" Bang shares a Scandinavian root with the Old Norse banga, "to pound."

Example Sentences

As a result, people tell me they want to feel they're getting bang for their buck - particularly before going out to bars and clubs.

From BBC • Apr. 25, 2026

That’s where I feel like you get more bang for your buck.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

Rick Atkinson’s “The British Are Coming,” about the Revolutionary War, is beautifully written and started off with a bang, but soon the accounts of battles, with their obligatory suffering and death, became too much.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

“As the lineman would go down the street, bringing cable to the city, the people would run alongside their trucks, bang on his side, and say, ‘When can we have it?’

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

He grabbed the cup and threw the contents of it back, finishing it off and putting it down on the desk with a bang.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega

Related Words

• bash
• bump
• collide
• knock
• rap
• slam
• smash
• thump
• whack