hang - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

From Middle English hangen, hongen, from a fusion of Old English hōn (“to hang, be hanging”, transitive verb) and hangian (“to hang, cause to hang”, intransitive verb), respectively from the transitive verb Proto-West Germanic *hą̄han and the intransitive verb *hangēn; also probably influenced by Old Norse hengja (“to suspend”) and hanga (“to be suspended”); all from Proto-Germanic *hanhaną and *hangāną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱenk- (“to waver, be in suspense”).

See also Dutch hangen, Low German hangen and hängen, German hängen, Norwegian Bokmål henge, Norwegian Nynorsk henga; also Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌷𐌰𐌽 (hāhan), Hittite 𒂵𒀀𒀭𒂵 (/⁠kānk-⁠/, “to hang”), Sanskrit शङ्कते (śáṅkate, “is in doubt, hesitates”), Latin cūnctārī (“to delay”).

hang (third-person singular simple present hangs, present participle hanging, simple past and past participle hung or (law) hanged)

  1. (intransitive) To be or remain suspended.
    The lights hung from the ceiling.
    • 1913, Mrs. [Marie] Belloc Lowndes, chapter II, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., […], [1933], →OCLC, page 0111:
      On the dark-green walls hung a series of eight engravings, portraits of early Victorian belles, clad in lace and tarletan ball dresses, clipped from an old Book of Beauty. Mrs. Bunting was very fond of these pictures; she thought they gave the drawing-room a note of elegance and refinement.
  2. (intransitive) To float, as if suspended.
    The smoke hung in the room.
    • 2023 September 20, Nigel Harris, “Comment Special: And it's goodbye from me...”, in RAIL, number 992, page 3:
      It was a couple of days after the crash, with the smell of burning still hanging in the air from the incinerated wreckage of Coach H, where 31 passengers lost their lives, when I visited the West London site.
  3. (intransitive) To veer in one direction.
    • 1979, Council of Law Reporting for New South Wales, New South Wales Law Reports‎[1] (non-fiction), New South Wales: Council of Law Reporting for New South Wales, published 1979, page 16:
      The jockey claimed that the horse hung towards the outside […]
  4. (intransitive, of a ball in cricket, tennis, etc.) To rebound unexpectedly or unusually slowly, due to backward spin on the ball or imperfections of the ground.
  5. (transitive) To hold or bear in a suspended or inclined manner or position instead of erect.
    He hung his head in shame.
  6. (transitive) To cause (something) to be suspended, as from a hook, hanger, hinges, or the like.
    Hang those lights from the ceiling.
    to hang a door
  7. (transitive, law) To kill (someone) by suspension from the neck, usually as a form of execution or suicide.
    The culprits were hanged from the nearest tree.
    • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 3, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
      ' […] There's every Staffordshire crime-piece ever made in this cabinet, and that's unique. The Van Hoyer Museum in New York hasn't that very rare second version of Maria Marten's Red Barn over there, nor the little Frederick George Manning—he was the criminal Dickens saw hanged on the roof of the gaol in Horsemonger Lane, by the way—'
    • 2022 March 10, Peter Lucas, “Lucas: Putin has blood on his hands and The Hague must make him pay”, in Boston Herald‎[2], archived from the original on 6 August 2022:
      As things go from bad to worse for Putin in his maniacal, murderous attack on Ukraine, he could end up like Milosevic, or worse. The court could change its rules and hang him, the way the Allies hanged Nazi war criminals at the end of World War II.
  8. (intransitive, law) To be executed by suspension by one's neck from a gallows, a tree, or other raised bar, attached by a rope tied into a noose.
    You will hang for this, my friend.
  9. (transitive, informal) (used in maledictions) To damn.
  10. (intransitive, informal) To loiter; to hang around; to spend time idly.
    Synonym: hang out
    I didn't see anything, officer. I was just hanging.
  1. (transitive) To exhibit (an object) by hanging.
  2. (transitive) To apply (wallpaper or drywall to a wall).
    Let's hang this cute animal design in the nursery.
  3. (transitive) To decorate (something) with hanging objects.
    Let's hang the nursery with some new wallpaper.
  4. (intransitive, figuratively) To remain persistently in one's thoughts.
  1. (transitive) To prevent from reaching a decision, especially by refusing to join in a verdict that must be unanimous.
    One obstinate juror can hang a jury.
  2. (intransitive, computing) To stop responding to manual input devices such as the keyboard and mouse.
    The computer has hung again. Not even pressing ++ works.
    When I push this button the program hangs.
  3. (transitive, computing) To cause (a program or computer) to stop responding.
    The program has a bug that can hang the system.
  4. (transitive, chess) To cause (a piece) to become vulnerable to capture.
    If you move there, you'll hang your rook.
  5. (intransitive, chess) To be vulnerable to capture.
    In this standard opening position White has to be careful because the pawn on e4 hangs.
  6. (transitive, baseball, slang, of a pitcher) To throw a hittable off-speed pitch.
  1. (transitive, figurative) To attach or cause to stick (a charge or accusation, etc.).

to be or remain suspended

to float as if suspended

to hold or bear in a suspended or inclined manner or position

to cause to be suspended

to place on a hook

to execute by suspension from the neck

to be executed using gallows

informal: to loiter

to exhibit by hanging

to decorate (something) with hanging objects

to remain persistently in one's thoughts

computing: to stop responding

chess: to cause to become vulnerable to capture

chess: to be vulnerable to capture

Translations to be checked

hang (plural hangs)

  1. The way in which something hangs.
    This skirt has a nice hang.
  2. A mass of hanging material.
    • 2014, Matthew Jobin, The Nethergrim, volume 1:
      They advanced in a crouch, dropping to their knees every few yards to pass under a hang of rock.
    • 1911, Alexander MacDonald, The Invisible Island: A Story of the Far North of Queensland, page 105:
      “I don't see the hang of so much talky-talky,” broke in Uncle Sam. “We've heard all that can be said about things, […]
  3. A slackening of motion.
  4. A sharp or steep declivity or slope.
  5. (computing) An instance of ceasing to respond to input.
    We sometimes get system hangs.
  6. (informal, figuratively) A grip, understanding.
    • 1914, Ernest Bramah, Max Carrados:
      On the fatal evening I duly made my way to the theatre—a little late, so as to take my seat unobserved. After I had got the general hang I glanced up occasionally until I caught Stephanie's eye […]
  7. (colloquial)
    1. A hangout.
      • 2008, Jim Norton, Happy Endings, Gallery Books, →ISBN, page 25:
        My first day was a fun hang, but I didn't really do too much. Me and stupid Bob just hung around the casino looking at box and losing money.
      • 2021 April 14, Jen Kirsch, “A Good Hang Lasts No More Than 90 Minutes”, in InStyle‎[4], archived from the original on 21 October 2022:
        So how can you set up a hang within a 90-minute time-frame for yourself? Be clear with your friends about timing from the get-go, so they, too, can decide if it's worth their time to even meet up.
      • 2021 October 27, Danielle McTaggart (quoted), Chelsea Brimstin, “Dear Rouge share sentimental video for delicate new single 'Life Goes By And I Can’t Keep Up'”, in Indie88‎[5], archived from the original on 21 October 2022:
        He invited us over to his beautiful heritage home in downtown Toronto for a hang.
      • 2025 March 17, Andrew Marantz, “The Battle for the Bros”, in The New Yorker‎[6], →ISSN:
        Then again, a live stream isn’t supposed to be a tight, scripted lecture. It’s supposed to be a good hang.
    2. A person that someone hangs out with.
      • 2004, Relient K, Mark Nichols, The Complex Infrastructure Known as the Female Mind, Thomas Nelson, →ISBN, page 76:
        She might announce something to everyone that makes no sense or tells a story that rambles on and on and makes no point. But for some reason nobody seems to mind. We all just like to listen to The Airhead. She's a fun hang.
      • 2018 July 18, Joe Coscarelli, “How Benny Blanco Became the Most Popular Oddball in Pop Music”, in New York Times‎[7]:
        "I couldn't sit down and play a concert for you or really wow you on any instrument," Mr. Blanco said, estimating that "like 75 percent" of his success comes from being a good hang. "What I can do is meet an artist, know what type of song I think we should make and be their therapist, make everyone feel comfortable."
      • 2019, Shea Serrano, Arturo Torres, Movies (And Other Things), Grand Central Publishing, →ISBN:
        And maaaaaaaybe Superman would be a good hang, though I suspect that'd be a lot like hanging out with a youth pastor.

From hang sangwich, Irish colloquial pronunciation of ham sandwich.

hang (uncountable)

  1. (Ireland, informal, derogatory) Cheap processed ham (cured pork), often made specially for sandwiches.

hang

  1. Alternative spelling of Hang (“musical instrument”).

Alteration of dang, itself a minced oath of damn.

hang (plural hangs)

  1. (colloquial) The smallest amount of concern or consideration; a damn.
    I don't give a hang.
    They don't seem to care a hang about the consequences.

From Dutch hangen, a merger of Middle Dutch hangen and haen.

hang (present **hang, present participle hangende, past participle gehang)

  1. (transitive and intransitive) to hang

From Dutch hang.

hang (plural hange)

  1. slope

From Proto-Central Bahnaric *haːŋ, from Chamic. Compare Eastern Cham ꨨꩃ (hang).

hang

  1. bank, shore

háng (Badlit spelling ᜑᜅ᜔)

  1. (Metro Cebu, Bohol, Southern Leyte) alternative form of halang

From English hang.

hang

  1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) short for hang機 / hang机 (heng1 gei1)

From German Hang, a noun derived from the verb hangen (see hängen (“to hang”)).

hang c (singular definite hangen, not used in plural form)

  1. inclination or disposition towards something
    Manden har hang til raseri.
    The man is disposed towards rage.

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

hang

  1. past tense of hænge

hang c (plural hangen, diminutive hangetje n)

  1. a support for hanging objects, such as a nail for a picture frame
  2. a place to dry or smoke produce
  3. a hankering, desire
    Hij werd gedreven door een hang naar status.
    He was driven by a desire for status.

hang

  1. inflection of hangen:
    1. first-person singular present indicative
    2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
    3. imperative

From Proto-Finnic *hanko. Related to Finnish hanko.

hang (genitive hangu, partitive hangu)

  1. fork
Declension of hang (ÕS type 22e/riik, length gradation)
singular plural
nominative hang hangud
accusative nom.
gen. hangu
genitive hangude
partitive hangu hangehangusid
illative hanguhangusse hangudessehangesse
inessive hangus hangudeshanges
elative hangust hangudesthangest
allative hangule hangudelehangele
adessive hangul hangudelhangel
ablative hangult hangudelthangelt
translative hanguks hangudekshangeks
terminative hanguni hangudeni
essive hanguna hangudena
abessive hanguta hangudeta
comitative hanguga hangudega

From Proto-Finnic *hanki.

hang (genitive hange, partitive hange)

  1. snowdrift; blanket of snow
Declension of hang (ÕS type 22i/külm, length gradation)
singular plural
nominative hang hanged
accusative nom.
gen. hange
genitive hangede
partitive hange hangihangesid
illative hangehangesse hangedessehangisse
inessive hanges hangedeshangis
elative hangest hangedesthangist
allative hangele hangedelehangile
adessive hangel hangedelhangil
ablative hangelt hangedelthangilt
translative hangeks hangedekshangiks
terminative hangeni hangedeni
essive hangena hangedena
abessive hangeta hangedeta
comitative hangega hangedega

From an unattested stem with the suffix -g.

hang (plural hangok)

  1. voice
    felemeli a hangját ― to raise one's voice
  2. sound
    lépések hangja ― the sound of footsteps

Inherited from Malay hang.

hang

  1. (archaic) male pronoun

hang f

  1. h-prothesized form of ang

hang m (invariable)

  1. (music) Hang

Doublet of engkau.

hang (Jawi spelling هڠ)

  1. (informal, Kedah, Penang, Perlis) The person being spoken to; you.

Malay personal pronouns

| | Singular | Plural | | | ----------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | 1st person | saya1 aku3 | kita4 kami2 & 5 kita orang3 & 5 | | 2nd person | awak1 anda2 awda8 (eng)kau3 kamu3 | (2nd person) + semua6 kalian2 (eng)kau orang3 | | 3rd person | dia ia beliau7 -nya2 | mereka2 dia orang3 |

1 Polite.
2 Formal.
3 Informal.
4 Includes the listener (inclusive).
5 Excludes the listener (exclusive).
6 Formality depends on the second person pronoun used.
7 Honorific.
8 Formal (Brunei).

Notes:

See each entry for more information.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

hang (Jawi spelling هڠ)

  1. (Kedah) Hiding place of a hunter from a wild animal.
    Synonym: ran

hang

  1. nonstandard spelling of hāng
  2. nonstandard spelling of háng
  3. nonstandard spelling of hǎng
  4. nonstandard spelling of hàng

From Proto-Vietic *haːŋ. Cognate with Vietnamese hang.

hang

  1. (Mường Bi) cave

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

hang

  1. (Mường Bi) roasted

hang

  1. (Mường Bi) to roast

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

hang

  1. (Mường Bi) boiled

hang

  1. (intransitive) simple past of henge

hang

  1. past of henga

Inherited from Proto-Yeniseian *Haŋ (“nose”).[1]

hang (plural unknown)

  1. nose

  2. ^ Vajda, Edward; Werner, Heinrich (2022), Comparative-Historical Yeniseian Dictionary (Languages of the World/Dictionaries; 79, 80), Muenchen: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, page 320

From Proto-Tai *trwɤːŋᴬ. Cognate with Thai หาง (hǎang), Northern Thai ᩉᩣ᩠ᨦ, Lao ຫາງ (hāng), Lü ᦠᦱᧂ (ḣaang), Tai Dam ꪬꪱꪉ, Shan ႁၢင် (hǎang), Tai Nüa ᥞᥣᥒᥴ (háang), Ahom 𑜍𑜂𑜫 (raṅ), Zhuang rieng or riengz, Bouyei riangl.

hang (Nôm form 𭯢)

  1. tail

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

hang

  1. to cook; to fry

hang

  1. not yet

From Proto-Vietic *haːŋ. Cognate with Vietnamese hang, Muong hang.

hang

  1. (Cuối Chăm) cave

From Proto-Vietic *haːŋ (“cave”). Possibly related to the word reconstructed as Proto-Mon-Khmer *ʔaaŋ (“to open”) by Shorto (2006).

(classifier cái) hang • (𡎟, 馨, 𧯄, 𧯅, 𥧎)

  1. cave
    Synonym: động
  2. den

Compare English hang.

hang

  1. A person that someone hangs out with.

hang

  1. juice, curry
  2. yawn

hang

  1. to yawn