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ban

1
[ ban ]
/ bæn /
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See synonyms for: ban / banned / banning on Thesaurus.com
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
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Origin of ban

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

OTHER WORDS FROM ban

ban·na·ble, adjectiveun·banned, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH ban

banns, bans

Other definitions for ban (2 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
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English, ban, ban(n)e, iban “a lord's proclamation or edict or summons,” Old English (ge)ban(n) “proclamation, ordinance, summons to arms” (derivative of bannan ); influenced in some senses by Old French ban (Anglicized as ban ), from the same Germanic source; see ban1

Other definitions for ban (3 of 4)

ban3
[ ban, bahn ]
/ bæn, bɑn /
noun
(formerly) the governor of Croatia and Slavonia.
History/Historical. a provincial governor of the southern marches of Hungary.

Origin of ban

3
First recorded in 1605–15; from Serbo-Croatian bân, contracted from unattested bojan, bajan, said to be from a Turkic personal name, perhaps introduced into the Balkans by the Avars; compare Medieval Greek bo(e)ános “governor”

Other definitions for ban (4 of 4)

ban4
[ bahn ]
/ bɑn /
noun, plural ba·ni [bah-nee]. /ˈbɑ ni/.
a Romanian coin, one 100th of a leu.

Origin of ban

4
First recorded in 1960–65; from Romanian, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Serbo-Croatian bân “provincial governor”; see origin at ban3
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to ban

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

How to use ban in a sentence

  • The crimes of the higher command have passed in Germany uncondemned and unbanned by cardinals and bishops.

    Raemaekers' Cartoons|Louis Raemaekers

British Dictionary definitions for ban (1 of 3)

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 ban (2 of 3)

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 ban (3 of 3)

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
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