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hang

Pronunciation: /haŋ/
Translate hang | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of hang

verb (past and past participle hung /hʌŋ/ except in sense 2)

  • 1suspend or be suspended from above with the lower part dangling free: [with object]:that’s where people are supposed to hang their washing [no object]:he stood swaying, his arms hanging limply by his sides
  • attach or be attached to a hook on a wall: [with object]:we could just hang the pictures on the walls [no object]:the room in which the pictures will hang
  • (be hung with) be adorned with (pictures or other decorations):the walls of her hall were hung with examples of her work
  • attach or be attached so as to allow free movement about the point of attachment: [with object]:a long time was spent hanging a couple of doors [no object, with complement]:she just sat with her mouth hanging open
  • [with object] attach (meat or game) to a hook and leave it until dry, tender, or high: venison needs to be hung for a minimum of seven days
  • [no object, with adverbial] (of fabric or a garment) fall or drape from a fixed point in a specified way:this blend of silk and wool hangs well and resists creases
  • [with object] paste (wallpaper) to a wall: if you’re using lining paper, hang it horizontally
  • 2 (past and past participle hanged) [with object] kill (someone) by tying a rope attached from above around their neck and removing the support from beneath them (often used as a form of capital punishment):he was hanged for murder she hanged herself in her cell
  • [no object] be killed by hanging:both men were sentenced to hang
  • dated used in expressions as a mild oath: [no object]:they could all go hang [with object]:I’m hanged if I know
  • 3 [no object, with adverbial of place] remain static in the air:a black pall of smoke hung over Valletta
  • be present or imminent, especially oppressively or threateningly:a sense of dread hung over him for days
  • 4 Computing come or cause to come unexpectedly to a state in which no further operations can be carried out: [no object]:the machine has hung [with object]:it kept hanging my computer
  • 5 [with object] Baseball deliver (a pitch) which does not change direction and is easily hit by a batter: this leads to hanging a breaking ball

noun

[in singular]
  • a downward droop or bend:the bullish hang of his head
  • the way in which something hangs:the hang of the garments
  • the way in which pictures are displayed in an exhibition: critics are apt to use up as much space reviewing the hang as the art

exclamation

South African & NZ dated
  • used to express a range of strong emotions from enthusiasm to anger:hang, but I loved those soldiers!

Phrases

get the hang of

informal learn how to operate or do (something):I never got the hang of roller-skating

hang by a thread

see thread.

hang fire

delay or be delayed in taking action or progressing: a near agreement was hanging fire because of the concerns of some provinces

hang one's hat

North American informal be resident.

hang heavily (or heavy)

(of time) pass slowly: time that hung heavily on hands that were growing increasingly useless

hang in the air

remain unresolved:the success of the Green movement has left that rather uncomfortable question hanging in the air

hang a left (or right)

informal, North American make a left (or right) turn: down some more stairs, through another door, then hang a left

hang loose

see loose.

(a) hang of (a)

South African & Australian/NZ informal used to emphasize something very bad or great:we had to walk a hang of a long way
[hang, a euphemism for hell, apparently from New Zealand English]

hang someone out to dry

informal leave someone in a difficult or vulnerable situation: the White House wasn’t about to hang Thomas out to dry

hang ten

Surfing ride a surfboard with all ten toes curled over the board’s front edge.

hang tough

North American informal be or remain inflexible or firmly resolved: company chiefs continued to hang tough, despite increasing competition

let it all hang out

informal be very relaxed or uninhibited.

not care (or give) a hang

informal not care at all: people just don’t give a hang about plants

you may (or might) as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb

proverb if the penalty for two offences is the same, you might as well commit the more serious one, especially if it brings more benefit.

Phrasal Verbs

hang around (or round or British about)

  • 1loiter; wait around:undercover officers spent most of their time hanging around bars
  • informal wait: [in imperative]:hang about, you see what it says here?
  • 2 (hang around with) associate with (someone):I hung around with the thugs

hang back

remain behind:Stephen hung back for fear of being seen
show reluctance to act or move:I do not believe that our European neighbours will hang back from this

hang in

informal remain persistent and determined in difficult circumstances:in the second half, we just had to hang in there

hang on

  • 1hold tightly:he hung on to the back of her coat
  • informal remain firm or persevere, especially in difficult circumstances:United hung on for victory
  • (hang on to) keep; retain:he is determined to hang on to his job
  • 2 informal wait for a short time:hang on a minute—do you think I might have left anything out?
  • (on the telephone) remain connected until one is able to talk to a particular person.
  • 3be contingent or dependent on:everything hangs on the forthcoming by-elections
  • 4listen closely to:she hung on his every word

hang something on

informal attach the blame for something to (someone): it is unfair to hang the loss on Williams

hang out

  • 1(of washing) hang from a clothes line to dry: the inhabitants fled with such haste that their washing is still hanging out
  • 2protrude and hang loosely downwards:chaps in jeans with their shirts hanging out
  • (hang out of) lean out of:he was found after the collision hanging out of the defendant’s car
  • 3 informal spend time relaxing or enjoying oneself:musicians hang out with their own kind
  • 4Australian/NZ resist or survive in difficult circumstances; hold out.
  • (hang out for) desire strongly; crave.

hang something out

hang something on a line or pole or from a window: the embassies hung out their flags

hang together

  • 1make sense; be consistent:it helps the speech to hang together
  • 2(of people) remain associated; help or support each other: the autonomous regions have an incentive to hang together

hang up

  • 1hang from a hook:your dressing gown’s hanging up behind the door
  • 2end a telephone conversation by cutting the connection: ‘Thanks,’ she says, and hangs up
  • (hang up on) end a telephone conversation with (someone) by abruptly and unexpectedly cutting the connection: somebody called up and the reporter hung up on him

hang something up

hang something on a hook:Jamie hung up our jackets
informal cease or retire from the activity associated with the garment or object specified:the midfielder has finally decided to hang up his boots

Origin:

Old English hangian (intransitive verb), of West Germanic origin, related to Dutch and German hangen, reinforced by the Old Norse transitive verb hanga

In modern English hang has two past tense and past participle forms: hanged and hung. Hung is the normal form in most general uses, e.g. they hung out the washing; she hung around for a few minutes; he had hung the picture over the fireplace, but hanged is the form normally used in reference to execution by hanging: the prisoner was hanged. The reason for this distinction is a complex historical one: hanged, the earlier form, was superseded by hung sometime after the 16th century; it is likely that the retention of hanged for the execution sense may have to do with the tendency of archaic forms to remain in the legal language of the courts.

hang in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of hang in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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