DEFINITIONS
The
2019 WORD
OF THE YEAR is...

bans

[ banz ]
/ bænz /

noun (used with a plural verb) Ecclesiastical.

banns.

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Words related to bans

embargo, restriction, refusal, injunction, prohibition, boycott, censorship, prohibit, bar, halt, prevent, suppress, outlaw, restrict, exclude, proscribe, proscription, stoppage, interdiction, limitation

Words nearby bans

banon, banquet, banquet room, banquette, banquo, bans, bansela, banshee, banstead, bant, bantam

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH bans

banns bans

Definition for bans (2 of 4)

ban1
[ ban ]
/ bæn /

verb (used with object), banned, ban·ning.

to prohibit, forbid, or bar; interdict: to ban nuclear weapons; The dictator banned all newspapers and books that criticized his regime.
Archaic.
  1. to pronounce an ecclesiastical curse upon.
  2. to curse; execrate.

noun

Origin of ban

1
before 1000; Middle English bannen, Old English bannan to summon, proclaim; cognate with Old Norse banna to curse (probably influencing some senses of ME word), Old High German bannan; akin to Latin fārī to speak, Sanskrit bhanati (he) speaks

SYNONYMS FOR ban

1 taboo, outlaw, proscribe.
3 prohibition, proscription, interdict.
3, 4 taboo.

ANTONYMS FOR ban

1 allow.

OTHER WORDS FROM ban

ban·na·ble, adjectiveun·banned, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH ban

band bannedbanns bans

Definition for bans (3 of 4)

banns

or bans

[ banz ]
/ bænz /

noun (used with a plural verb) Ecclesiastical.

notice of an intended marriage, given three times in the parish church of each of the betrothed.
any public announcement of a proposed marriage, either verbal or written and made in a church or by church officials.

Origin of banns

1540–50; variant of bans, plural of ban2

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH banns

banns bans

Definition for bans (4 of 4)

ban2
[ ban ]
/ bæn /

noun

a public proclamation or edict.
bans, Ecclesiastical. banns.
(in the feudal system)
  1. the summoning of the sovereign's vassals for military service.
  2. the body of vassals summoned.

Origin of ban

2
1200–50; Middle English, aphetic variant of iban, Old English gebann proclamation, summons to arms (derivative of bannan ban1), influenced in some senses by Old French ban, from same Germanic base
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bans

British Dictionary definitions for bans (1 of 5)

bans
/ (bænz) /

pl n

a variant spelling of banns

British Dictionary definitions for bans (2 of 5)

banns

bans

/ (bænz) /

pl n

the public declaration of an intended marriage, usually formally announced on three successive Sundays in the parish churches of both the betrothed
forbid the banns to raise an objection to a marriage announced in this way

Word Origin for banns

C14: plural of bann proclamation; see ban 1

British Dictionary definitions for bans (3 of 5)

ban1
/ (bæn) /

verb bans, banning or banned

noun

Word Origin for ban

Old English bannan to proclaim; compare Old Norse banna to forbid, Old High German bannan to command

British Dictionary definitions for bans (4 of 5)

ban2
/ (bæn) /

noun

(in feudal England) the summoning of vassals to perform their military obligations

Word Origin for ban

C13: from Old French ban, of Germanic origin; related to Old High German ban command, Old Norse bann ban 1

British Dictionary definitions for bans (5 of 5)

ban3
/ (bæn) /

noun plural bani (ˈbɑːnɪ)

a monetary unit of Romania and Moldova worth one hundredth of a leu

Word Origin for ban

from Romanian, from Serbo-Croat bān lord
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