hanging

American  

[hang-ing] / ˈhæŋ ɪŋ /

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.

3. a suspending or temporary attaching, as of a painting.

   a careless hanging of pictures.

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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.

3. suspended; pendent; overhanging.

   a hanging cliff.

4. situated on a steep slope or at a height.

   a hanging garden.

5. directed downward.

   a hanging look.

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

hanging British  

/ ˈhæŋɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the putting of a person to death by suspending the body by the neck from a noose

   2. ( as modifier )

      a hanging offence

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

3. the act of a person or thing that hangs

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adjective

1. not supported from below; suspended

2. undecided; still under discussion

3. inclining or projecting downwards; overhanging

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

5. (prenominal) given to issuing harsh sentences, esp death sentences

   a hanging judge

6. informal unpleasant

7. chess See hanging pawn

Other Word Forms

• hangingly adverb
• unhanging adjective

Etymology

Origin of hanging

1250–1300; Middle English (noun, adj.), Old English hangande (adj.) See hang, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Example Sentences

Before she could say anything, “a client I’d been trying to reach all day was calling in. I said to Laura, ‘Sorry, I have to call you back,’ and disconnected, literally leaving her hanging.

From The Wall Street Journal

Filling his water tank at a petrol station outside the city, lorry driver Abdilrashiid Adam Jamac told AFP he now had an Israeli flag hanging in his home.

From Barron's

According to reports in the Austrian media, the court heard how the mountain rescue team found Kerstin's body hanging upside down from a rock face.

From BBC

But past really is prologue, so the question hanging over the discussion Monday night was not about what Altadena has been, but what it will become.

From Los Angeles Times

Then 27th-ranked Italy, in their first World Cup, needed 30 from the last two overs in Kolkata on Monday for a giant-killing that could have left England's World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.

From Barron's