# bang

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈbæŋ/ · frequency rank #4,139

## Definitions
1. A sudden percussive noise.
2. A strike upon an object causing such a noise.
3. An explosion.
4. Synonym of bangs: hair hanging over the forehead, especially a hairstyle with such hair cut straight across.
5. The symbol !, known as an exclamation point.
6. A factorial, in mathematics, because the factorial of n is often written as n!
7. An act of sexual intercourse.
8. An offbeat figure typical of reggae songs and played on guitar and piano.
9. An explosive product.
10. An injection, a shot (of a narcotic drug).
11. An abrupt left turn.
12. strong smell (of)
13. A thrill.

## Etymology
From Middle English *bangen, from Old English *bangian or borrowed from Old Norse banga (“to pound, hammer”); both from Proto-Germanic *bangōną (“to beat, pound”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰen- (“to beat, hit, injure”). Cognate with Scots bang, bung (“to strike, bang, hurl, thrash, offend”), Icelandic banga (“to pound, hammer”), Old Swedish bånga ("to hammer"; whence modern Swedish banka (“to knock, pound, bang”)), Danish banke (“to beat”), bengel (“club”), Low German bangen, bangeln (“to strike, beat”), West Frisian bingel, bongel, Dutch bengel (“bell; rascal”), German Bengel (“club”), bungen (“to throb, pulsate”).
In the sense of a fringe of hair, from bang off.
In the sense of abrupt left turn, from Boston left and associated risk of a crash.

## Easily confused with
- **bn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bn)
- **BG** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bg)
- **big** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-big)
- **bar** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bar)
- **bay** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bay)
- **ben** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-ben)
- **bat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bat)
- **bin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bin)
- **bug** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bug)
- **beg** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-beg)
- **BON** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bon)
- **bun** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bun)
- **bog** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bog)
- **Bas** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bas)
- **bao** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bao)
- **baz** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-baz)
- **bap** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bap)
- **BCG** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bcg)
- **Bau** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bau)
- **bank** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bang-vs-bank)

## Common misspellings (6)
`abng`, `bagn`, `bangg`, `banng`, `bbang`, `bnag`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/bang