spang

American

[spang] / spæŋ /

adverb

Informal.

directly; exactly.

The bullet landed spang on target.

spang British

/ spæŋ /

adverb

informal exactly, firmly, or straight

spang on target

"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

Etymology

Origin of spang

First recorded in 1835–45; origin uncertain

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.

See Examples For:

spang

But Beverly Hills is spang in the middle of one of America's largest urban bowls, Mr. Sarthou.

From Time Magazine Archive

A mighty man is Franklin Roosevelt, with many powers unknown to Joshua, but last week he bumped spang up against something Joshua didn't have to contend with: the psyche of the U.S. cow.

From Time Magazine Archive

Turning a corner, he bumped spang into another hurrying stroller, a large, portly man with walrus mustaches.

From Time Magazine Archive

A couple of years ago, when he was running for office, Alabama's caveman Governor James E. Folsom was struck spang in the middle of a speech, couldn't rightly put one word after another.

From Time Magazine Archive

The spiteful spang of his rifle barely interrupted the woods life close about us.

From A Virginia Scout by D. C. Hutchison

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023