# hang

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈhæŋ/ · frequency rank #2,487

## Definitions
1. To be or remain suspended.
2. To float, as if suspended.
3. To veer in one direction.
4. To rebound unexpectedly or unusually slowly, due to backward spin on the ball or imperfections of the ground.
5. To hold or bear in a suspended or inclined manner or position instead of erect.
6. To cause (something) to be suspended, as from a hook, hanger, hinges, or the like.
7. To kill (someone) by suspension from the neck, usually as a form of execution or suicide.
8. 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.
9. (used in maledictions) To damn.
10. To loiter; to hang around; to spend time idly.
11. To exhibit (an object) by hanging.
12. To apply (wallpaper or drywall to a wall).
13. To decorate (something) with hanging objects.
14. To remain persistently in one's thoughts.
15. To prevent from reaching a decision, especially by refusing to join in a verdict that must be unanimous.
16. To stop responding to manual input devices such as the keyboard and mouse.
17. To cause (a program or computer) to stop responding.
18. To cause (a piece) to become vulnerable to capture.
19. To be vulnerable to capture.
20. To throw a hittable off-speed pitch.
21. To attach or cause to stick (a charge or accusation, etc.).

## Etymology
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”).

## Easily confused with
- **HG** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hg)
- **hn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hn)
- **has** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-has)
- **hat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hat)
- **hug** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hug)
- **hay** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hay)
- **hon** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hon)
- **hog** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hog)
- **hen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hen)
- **hun** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hun)
- **har** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-har)
- **haw** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-haw)
- **hap** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hap)
- **hao** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hao)
- **Haq** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-haq)
- **hav** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hav)
- **hin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hin)
- **hCG** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hcg)
- **have** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-have)
- **hard** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hang-vs-hard)

## Common misspellings (6)
`ahng`, `hagn`, `hangg`, `hanng`, `hhang`, `hnag`

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