English Online Dictionary. What means gang? What does gang mean?
English
Pronunciation
- enPR: găng, IPA(key): /ɡæŋ/
- Rhymes: -æŋ
Etymology 1
From Middle English gangen, from Old English gangan (“to go, walk, turn out”), from Proto-Germanic *ganganą (“to go, walk”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step, walk”).
Cognate with Scots gang (“to go on foot, walk”), Swedish gånga (“to walk, go”), Faroese ganga (“to walk”), Icelandic ganga (“to walk, go”), Vedic Sanskrit जंहस् (jáṃhas). Ultimately: related to etym. 2, see below.
Alternative forms
- gan
Verb
gang (third-person singular simple present gangs, present participle ganging, simple past and past participle ganged)
- (intransitive, Northern England, Scotland) To go; walk; proceed.
- 1772, Richard Cumberland, The Fashionable Lover. A Comedy. Act III
- (Colin alone) Ah, Colin, thou’rt a prodigal; a thriftless loon thou’st been, that cou’d na’ keep a little pelf to thysall when thou had’st got it; now thou may’st gang in this poor geer to thy live's end, and worse too for aught I can tell; ’faith, mon, ’twas a smeart little bysack of money thou hadst scrap’d together, an the best part of it had na’ being last amongst thy kinsfolk, in the Isles of Skey and Mull; muckle gude may it do the weams of them that ha’ it! There was Jamie MacGregor and Sawney MacNab, and the twa braw lads of Kinruddin, with old Charley MacDougall, my mother's first husband's second cousin: by my sol I cou’d na’ see such near relations, and gentlemen of sich auncient families gang upon bare feet, while I rode a horseback: I had been na’ true Scot, an I cou’d na’ ge’en a countryman a gude last upon occasion (as he is going out, Miss Aubrey enters.)
- 1772, Richard Cumberland, The Fashionable Lover. A Comedy. Act III
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Middle English gang, from Old English gang (“a journey; way; passage”), from Proto-West Germanic *gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰongʰ-o-s, from *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step; stride”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Gong, Dutch gang, German Gang, Norwegian gang, Swedish gång, Icelandic gangur, Vedic Sanskrit जंहस् (jáṃhas).
Noun
gang (plural gangs)
- A number going in company; a number of friends or persons associated for a particular purpose.
- the Gashouse Gang
- The gang from our office is going out for drinks Friday night.
- A group of laborers under one foreman; a squad.
- a gang of sailors; a railroad gang; a labor gang or pool.
- A criminal group with a common cultural background and identifying features, often associated with a particular section of a city.
- a youth gang; a neighborhood gang; motorcycle gang.
- A group of criminals or alleged criminals who band together for mutual protection and profit.
- The Winter Hill Gang was quite proficient at murdering rival mobsters in order to take over their rackets.
- A group of politicians united in furtherance of a political goal.
- The Gang of Four was led by Jiang Qing, the fourth wife of Mao Zedong.
- Not all members of the Gang of Six are consistent in their opposition to filibuster.
- (US) A chain gang.
- A combination of similar tools or implements arranged so as, by acting together, to save time or labor; a set.
- a gang of saws; a gang of plows; a gang drill; gang milling.
- A set; all required for an outfit.
- a new gang of stays.
- (electrics) A number of switches or other electrical devices wired into one unit and covered by one faceplate.
- an outlet gang box; a double gang switch.
- (electrics) A group of wires attached as a bundle.
- a gang of wires
- Do a drop for the telephone gang, then another drop for the Internet gang, both through the ceiling of the wiring closet.
- (now chiefly dialectal) A going, journey; a course, path, track.
- (obsolete) An outhouse: an outbuilding used as a lavatory.
- c. 1000, Aelfric, Homilies, Vol. I, page 290:
- Þaða he to gange com.
- c. 1000, Aelfric, Homilies, Vol. I, page 290:
- (African-American Vernacular, used in the vocative) A term of address for someone, particularly when cautioning them or offering advice.
Synonyms
- (outhouse): See Thesaurus:bathroom
Hyponyms
Derived terms
Descendants
- → Cebuano: gang
- → Dutch: gang
- → Japanese: ギャング (gyangu)
- → Malay: geng
- → Norman: dgaîngue
- → Portuguese: gangue
- → Spanish: gang
- → Tagalog: gang
- → Thai: แก๊ง (gɛ́ng)
Translations
Verb
gang (third-person singular simple present gangs, present participle ganging, simple past and past participle ganged)
- (transitive) To attach similar items together to form a larger unit.
Derived terms
- gang up
- gang up on
See also
- Appendix:English collective nouns
Etymology 3
See gan.
Verb
gang
- Pronunciation spelling of gan.
Etymology 4
Shortening of gangbang.
Verb
gang (third-person singular simple present gangs, present participle ganging, simple past and past participle ganged)
- Synonym of gangbang: to have sex with a single partner as a gang.
References
- The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English.
Etymology 5
Noun
gang (countable and uncountable, plural gangs)
- (mining) Alternative form of gangue
Anagrams
- gnag
Afrikaans
Etymology
From Dutch gang, from Middle Dutch ganc, from Old Dutch gank, gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /χaŋ/
Noun
gang (plural gange)
- a passageway, alley
Alemannic German
Verb
gang
- second-person imperative singular of gaa
Balinese
Romanization
gang
- Romanization of ᬕᬂ
Cebuano
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡaŋ/, [ˈɡaŋ]
Etymology 1
Borrowed from English gang, from Middle English gang, from Old English gang (“a journey; way; passage”), from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰongʰ-o-s, from *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step; stride”).
Noun
gang
- gang (company of persons)
- Synonym: barkada
- criminal gang
Derived terms
- ganggang
Etymology 2
From langga, pangga. Compare lang.
Noun
gang
- Term of address: dear; sweetie
Quotations
For quotations using this term, see Citations:gang.
Danish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡ̊anɡ̊/, [ɡ̊ɑŋˀ]
- Rhymes: -ɑŋˀ
Etymology 1
From Old Danish gang, from Old Norse gangr, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- (“stride, step”).
Noun
gang c (singular definite gangen, plural indefinite gange)
- the act of walking, a walk
- a time (an occurrence, an incidence)
- Hvor mange gange slog klokken?
- How many times did the bell toll?
- Hvor mange gange slog klokken?
- a way or path to walk on, either outdoors or indoors (a corridor)
Inflection
Derived terms
Etymology 2
See gange.
Verb
gang
- imperative of gange
References
- “gang” in Den Danske Ordbog
- “gang” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog
Dutch
Etymology
From Middle Dutch ganc, from Old Dutch gank, gang, from Proto-West Germanic *gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɣɑŋ/
- Hyphenation: gang
- Rhymes: -ɑŋ
Noun
gang m (plural gangen, diminutive gangetje n)
- passageway, alley
- gait, walk (person's manner of walking or stepping)
- journey
- hallway, corridor
- course
Derived terms
Descendants
- Afrikaans: gang
- Petjo: gang
- → Balinese: ᬕᬂ (gang)
- → Caribbean Javanese: gang
- → Indonesian: gang
- → Min Nan: 澗/涧 (kàn, “narrow street”)
- → Papiamentu: gang, han, hangetsji, hangetsje
References
French
Etymology
Borrowed from English gang.
Pronunciation
- (France) IPA(key): /ɡɑ̃ɡ/
- (Canadian French) IPA(key): /ɡaŋ/
Noun
gang m (plural gangs)
- gang, group of ill-doers
Derived terms
- en gang
Further reading
- “gang”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Garo
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
gang
- river
References
- Burling, R. (2003) The Language of the Modhupur Mandi (Garo) Vol. II: The Lexicon[1], Bangladesh: University of Michigan, page 114
German
Verb
gang
- obsolete form of geh, singular imperative of gehen
Hungarian
Etymology
From German Gang.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈɡɒŋɡ]
- Rhymes: -ɒŋɡ
Noun
gang (plural gangok)
- (informal) outside walkway, hanging corridor (along the main walls of the courtyard of a tenement building, a major venue of socializing with neighbours)
- Synonym: (mainly as an architectural term) függőfolyosó
Declension
Derived terms
Further reading
- gang in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
Indonesian
Etymology 1
From Dutch gang (“passageway, alley”), from Middle Dutch ganc, from Old Dutch gank, gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰongʰ-o-s, from *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step; stride”). Doublet of geng.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡaŋ/
- Hyphenation: gang
Noun
gang (first-person possessive gangku, second-person possessive gangmu, third-person possessive gangnya)
- alleyway, alley, narrow street. A narrow pathway bound by walls on both sides
- gang buntu ― dead-end alley
- Synonym: lorong
Descendants
- → Min Nan: 澗/涧 (kàn, “narrow street”)
Etymology 2
Noun
gang (first-person possessive gangku, second-person possessive gangmu, third-person possessive gangnya)
- Alternative spelling of geng (“gang”)
Verb
gang
- Alternative spelling of geng
References
Further reading
- “gang” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.
Italian
Alternative forms
- ganga, ghenga, ghega (dated)
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English gang.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡɛnɡ/
- Rhymes: -ɛnɡ
Noun
gang f (usually invariable, plural (dated) gangs)
- gang, specifically:
- (dated) a group of people
- (dated) a group of laborers under one foreman
- a criminal group
Related terms
- gangster
References
Further reading
- gang in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Maltese
Etymology
Borrowed from English gang.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡanɡ/
Noun
gang m (plural gangijiet)
- gang (a company of persons)
Derived terms
Mandarin
Romanization
gang
- Nonstandard spelling of gāng.
- Nonstandard spelling of gǎng.
- Nonstandard spelling of gàng.
Usage notes
- Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.
Middle English
Noun
gang
- Alternative form of gong
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Old Norse gangr, also related to gå.
Noun
gang m (definite singular gangen, indefinite plural ganger, definite plural gangene)
- hall, hallway
- Sett fra deg skoene i gangen.
- Leave your shoes in the hallway.
- Sett fra deg skoene i gangen.
- passage, corridor
- I enden av den lange gangen er klasserommet.
- The classroom is at the end of the long corridor.
- I enden av den lange gangen er klasserommet.
- aisle
- walk, path
- walk, walking, going
- walk, gait
- Gangen hans er litt merkelig.
- His gait is a bit weird
- Gangen hans er litt merkelig.
- working, running, action, movement, motion, operation
- course; passage
- course; march
- time
- Vi vant fem ganger på rad!
- We won five times in a row!
- Vi vant fem ganger på rad!
- plot, action
- Historiens gang var litt komplisert.
- The plot of the story was somewhat complicated.
- Historiens gang var litt komplisert.
- (mining) dike, lode
- vein
- (anatomy) duct
Derived terms
References
- “gang” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Old Norse gangr, also related to gå.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡɑŋː/
Noun
gang m (definite singular gangen, indefinite plural gangar, definite plural gangane)
- hall, hallway
- Sett frå deg skorne i gangen.
- Leave your shoes in the hallway.
- Sett frå deg skorne i gangen.
- passage, corridor
- aisle
- walk, path
- walk, walking, going
- walk, gait
- Gangen hans er litt merkeleg.
- His gait is a bit weird
- Gangen hans er litt merkeleg.
- working, running, action, movement, motion, operation
- course; passage
- course; march
- plot, action
- Gangen i soga var litt komplisert.
- The plot of the story was somewhat complicated.
- Gangen i soga var litt komplisert.
- (mining) dike, lode
- vein
- (anatomy) duct
Derived terms
See also
- gong
References
- “gang” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Old English
Alternative forms
- gancg, gong
- ġeong, ġiong – with initial /j/ after palatalised past forms of gangan
Etymology
From Proto-West Germanic *gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step; stride”). Related to Old English gangan (“to go, walk”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡɑnɡ/, [ɡɑŋɡ]
Noun
gang m
- going, walking
- path
- walk, gait
- toilet
Declension
Derived terms
- gangsetl
- gangstōl
- ingang
- niþergang
- upgang
- ūtgang
- ymbgang
Derived terms
Descendants
- Middle English: gong, gang, gonge, goonge
- English: gang (see there for further descendants); gong, goung (obsolete)
- Scots: gang, gaung, ging
- Northeastern: dyang, gyang
Old High German
Etymology
From Proto-West Germanic *gang.
Noun
gang m (plural ganga)
- A path, course, way, journey; a going
Declension
Derived terms
- ubargang
- Wolfgang
Descendants
- Middle High German: ganc
- German: Gang
Polish
Etymology
Borrowed from English gang, from Middle English gang, from Old English gang, from Proto-West Germanic *gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰongʰ-o-s, from *ǵʰengʰ-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡaŋk/
- Rhymes: -aŋk
- Syllabification: gang
Noun
gang m inan
- gang (criminal group with a common background)
- Synonyms: banda, szajka
Declension
Related terms
Further reading
- gang in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- gang in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Portuguese
Noun
gang (Portugal) m or (Brazil) f (plural gangs)
- Dated spelling of gangue.
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from German Gang.
Noun
gang n (plural ganguri)
- passageway
Declension
Scots
Alternative forms
- gae
- gan
- gyang
- ging
Etymology
From Middle English gangen, from Old English gangan, Old Norse ganga, with inflected forms from Old English gān (like English go).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡɑŋ/
Verb
gang (third-person singular simple present gangs, present participle gaun, simple past gaed, past participle gaen)
- To go.
Spanish
Etymology
Borrowed from English gang.
Noun
gang m (plural gangs)
- gang
- Synonyms: (El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico) mara, pandilla
Related terms
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed from English gang, from Middle English gang, from Old English gang (“a journey; way; passage”), from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰongʰ-o-s, from *ǵʰengʰ- (“to step; stride”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡaŋ/, [ˈɡaŋ]
Noun
gang
- gang (company of persons)
- Synonyms: barkada, barkadahan
- criminal gang
Related terms
- gangster
- gangsterismo
Further reading
- “gang”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila: Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2018
- “gang” in Pinoy Dictionary, Cyberspace.ph, 2010-2023.
Vietnamese
Pronunciation
- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [ɣaːŋ˧˧]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [ɣaːŋ˧˧]
- (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [ɣaːŋ˧˧]
Etymology 1
From Proto-Vietic *c-kaːŋ (“handspan”).
Noun
gang • (𡬼, 𪮚)
- a handspan
See also
Etymology 2
From Proto-Vietic *t-kaːŋ, from Old Chinese 鋼 (OC *C.kˤaŋ) (B-S) (SV: cương).
Noun
gang • (𨧠, 𮢪)
- cast iron