Bang

How to spell bang

4 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce bang

What does bang mean?

1. nounA sudden sharp, loud noise.
2. verbTo hit something forcefully or close it noisily.
3. adverbExactly or directly, used to stress precise position or timing.

Bang in a sentence

• noun

  The door slammed shut with a loud bang.

• verb

  Please do not bang the cupboard doors so hard.

• adverb

  The cafe sits bang in the centre of the high street.

• noun

  A single bang from the fireworks echoed across the valley.

• verb

  Workers had to bang the pipe with a mallet to free it.

• adverb

  The train arrived bang on time for once.

Where does bang come from?

Language of origin: Old Norse

Bang is largely an imitative word, meaning it was coined to echo the abrupt sound it names, much like 'boom' or 'crash'. It surfaced in English in the middle of the sixteenth century, and scholars connect it to Old Norse 'banga', meaning 'to hammer' or 'to beat', a sense preserved in related Scandinavian verbs for striking. From that idea of a heavy blow came both the noun for a sudden sharp noise and the verb for hitting something forcefully. Over time it picked up the lively adverbial use seen in phrases like 'bang in the middle', where it conveys exactness rather than sound. The spelling has stayed short and phonetic throughout its history, which is why it gives modern writers almost no trouble.

How the word is built

• bang (a single imitative root word with no prefix or suffix)