hang Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a special way of doing something
    knack; bent.
    • he had a bent for it
    • he had a special knack for getting into trouble
    • he couldn't get the hang of it
  2. noun the way a garment hangs
    • he adjusted the hang of his coat
  3. noun a gymnastic exercise performed on the rings or horizontal bar or parallel bars when the gymnast's weight is supported by the arms
  4. verb be suspended or hanging
    • The flag hung on the wall
  5. verb cause to be hanging or suspended
    hang up.
    • Hang that picture on the wall
  6. verb kill by hanging
    string up.
    • The murderer was hanged on Friday
  7. verb let drop or droop
    • Hang one's head in shame
  8. verb fall or flow in a certain way
    flow; fall.
    • This dress hangs well
    • Her long black hair flowed down her back
  9. verb be menacing, burdensome, or oppressive
    • This worry hangs on my mind
    • The cloud of suspicion hangs over her
  10. verb give heed (to)
    advert; give ear; attend; pay heed.
    • The children in the audience attended the recital quietly
    • She hung on his every word
    • They attended to everything he said
  11. verb be suspended or poised
    • Heavy fog hung over the valley
  12. verb hold on tightly or tenaciously
    cling.
    • hang on to your father's hands
    • The child clung to his mother's apron
  13. verb be exhibited
    • Picasso hangs in this new wing of the museum
  14. verb prevent from reaching a verdict, of a jury
  15. verb decorate or furnish with something suspended
    • Hang wallpaper
  16. verb be placed in position as by a hinge
    • This cabinet door doesn't hang right!
  17. verb place in position as by a hinge so as to allow free movement in one direction
    • hang a door
  18. verb suspend (meat) in order to get a gamey taste
    • hang the venison for a few days

WordNet

Hang transitive verb
Etymology
OE. hangen, hangien, v. t. & i., AS. hangian, v. i., fr. hn, v. t. (imp. heng, p. p. hongen); akin to OS. hangn, v. i. D. hangen, v. t. & i., G. hangen, v. i, hängen, v. t, Isel hanga, v. i., Goth. hahan, v. t. (imp. haíhah), hahan, v. i. (imp. hahaida), and perh. to L. cunctari to delay.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Hanged ∨ Hung ; present participle & verbal noun Hanging The use of hanged is preferable to that of hung, when reference is had to death or execution by suspension, and it is also more common
Definitions
  1. To suspend; to fasten to some elevated point without support from below; -- often used with up or out; as, to hang a coat on a hook; to hang up a sign; to hang out a banner.
  2. To fasten in a manner which will allow of free motion upon the point or points of suspension; -- said of a pendulum, a swing, a door, gate, etc.
  3. To fit properly, as at a proper angle (a part of an implement that is swung in using), as a scythe to its snath, or an ax to its helve. U. S.
  4. To put to death by suspending by the neck; -- a form of capital punishment; as, to hang a murderer.
  5. To cover, decorate, or furnish by hanging pictures trophies, drapery, and the like, or by covering with paper hangings; -- said of a wall, a room, etc.
    Hung be the heavens with black. Shak.
    And hung thy holy roofs with savage spoils. Dryden.
  6. To paste, as paper hangings, on the walls of a room.
  7. To hold or bear in a suspended or inclined manner or position instead of erect; to droop; as, he hung his head in shame.
    Cowslips wan that hang the pensive head. Milton.
Hang noun
Definitions
  1. The manner in which one part or thing hangs upon, or is connected with, another; as, the hang of a scythe.
  2. Connection; arrangement; plan; as, the hang of a discourse. Colloq.
  3. A sharp or steep declivity or slope. Colloq.

Webster 1913