bandage
Americannoun
-
bandages
plural
verb (used with object)
-
bandages,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bandaged,
past participle, past
-
bandaging
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
bandages,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bandaged,
past participle, past
-
bandaging
present participle
noun
-
a piece of material used to dress a wound, bind a broken limb, etc
-
a strip of any soft material used for binding, etc
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
bandagernoun
-
rebandageverb (used with object)
-
unbandageverb (used with object)
-
well-bandagedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bandagesimple
-
bandagessimple
-
have bandagedperfect
-
has bandagedperfect
-
am bandagingprogressive
-
are bandagingprogressive
-
is bandagingprogressive
-
have been bandagingperfect progressive
-
has been bandagingperfect progressive
Past
-
bandagedsimple
-
had bandagedperfect
-
was bandagingprogressive
-
were bandagingprogressive
-
had been bandagingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bandage
From Middle French, dating back to 1590–1600; see origin at band 2, -age
Explanation
A bandage is a piece of tape or cloth that's used to slow the flow of blood from a cut or another wound. Any good first aid kit is equipped with plenty of bandages. A bandage can vary from being a tiny plastic strip you stick on the spot where your cat scratched you to a thick, wide cloth that's applied to a serious injury at a hospital. You can also use it as a verb: "If I were you, I'd bandage that skinned knee so it doesn't get dirty." Bandage is a Middle French word, from the Old French bander, "to bind," and ultimately bande, "a strip."
Vocabulary lists containing bandage
Mother's Day Words: What Mothers Do
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Unit 9
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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:
Within seven days, she was back in the dance studio, rehearsing for forthcoming performances with a large bandage strapped across her stomach.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
The caption — complete with a winking emoji blowing a kiss — accompanied a photo of the “St. Denis Medical” star wearing a bandage around her face and neck.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026
His right hand shows persistent bruising, often covered with thick makeup and at times a bandage, and his ankles have appeared swollen.
From Barron's ● Jan. 1, 2026
But any payment is only a bandage for a deeply rigged market.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 23, 2025
As he approached, she held up her arm and pointed to the haphazard bandage.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
You can cat-proof them by wrapping them in no-chew, bitter-tasting bandages, which veterinary clinics use to prevent animals from biting them off.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
She confirmed she had undergone an operation on her leg - sharing pictures of her leg in bandages along with an X-ray - but would be "home soon".
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
When her bandages are unwrapped, she’s devastated to learn that her face is still symmetrical, with a thin nose, unblemished skin, and full lips.
From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2026
After the somewhat painful task of blood collection and a few bandages later, I mailed the sample in.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
I cough as I do and even with the bandages it hurts so I have to wait till I stop.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
Caluori posted a picture on social media in July of himself in a hospital bed with a heavily bandaged right wrist.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Eight hours later, he found himself in a hospital in Tine, with his hands burnt and bandaged.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Certainly not the one you have in mind: bandaged dead guy, ominous hieroglyphics, maybe Brendan Fraser.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
His right hand has repeatedly appeared bandaged and bruised.
From Salon ● Dec. 10, 2025
He cleaned and bandaged Nate’s blistered hands and patched up the holes in the bottom of his boots.
From I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis
“There were a lot of people in the background that were kind of bubblegum and bandaging everything together to make sure that there was not a single hiccup,” Goetter said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
In her post announcing the decision not to play, she shared photographs of her wearing bandaging on the left knee and of what she said were syringes used to drain fluid from the area.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Lifeguards at Bondi have been praised for their courage on the day of the December 14 attack, dragging people to safety, bandaging and resuscitating victims, and pulling panicked swimmers from the waves.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
"The treatment of human wounds was most likely first mentioned in a medical manuscript that dates back to 2200 BC, which included cleaning, plastering, and bandaging of wounds with certain wound care substances," says Schuppli.
From Science Daily ● May 2, 2024
Diana kept her eyes on Cas as Frankie stepped into the room and started explaining how the bandaging would work once Kaitlin was free.
From "Time Bomb" by Joelle Charbonneau
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
