shebang
Americannoun
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Informal. the structure of something, as of an organization, contrivance, or affair.
The whole shebang fell apart when the chairman quit.
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a primitive dwelling; shack; shanty.
noun
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a situation, matter, or affair (esp in the phrase the whole shebang )
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a hut or shack
Etymology
Origin of shebang
1860–65, origin uncertain (perhaps alteration of char-à-banc ( def. ), though sense shift unclear; shebeen, often cited as the source, is implausible both phonetically and semantically)
Explanation
A shebang is a thing or a group, used in the phrase "the whole shebang." When your teacher says the test will cover the whole shebang, she means everything you've studied is fair game. The informal phrase"the whole shebang" means "everything," which you could also call "the whole ball of wax" or "the whole enchilada." Shebang is an American word, first used by Civil War soldiers (and the poet Walt Whitman) to mean "rustic dwelling" or "hut." In 1872, Mark Twain used shebang to mean "vehicle," but that same year it appeared in a newspaper with its current meaning, in the first known use of "the whole shebang."
Vocabulary lists containing shebang
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.
Her last big screen appearance was in The Whole Shebang in 2001.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2025
For Otto Baxter, a performer whose drag name is Horrora Shebang, drag performance is only a small part of his artistic career.
From New York Times • Sep. 5, 2019
I found the Whole Shebang for $12 , great value wine.
From New York Times • Jan. 12, 2017
His big break came in 1963 as co-host on KTLA’s after-school dance show Shebang with Dick Clark, another radio and TV icon.
From The Guardian • Jun. 15, 2014
“We’re going to continue doing it whether you like it or not,” Otto Baxter, better known as Horrora Shebang, told the New York Times.
From Slate
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
