English
gang
Pronunciation Etymology 1

From Middle English gangen, from Old English gangan, from Proto-West Germanic *gangan, from Proto-Germanic *ganganą, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ-.

Cognate with Scots gang, Swedish gånga, Faroese ganga, Icelandic ganga, sa-ved जंहस्. Ultimately: related to etym. 2, see below.

Verb

gang (gangs, present participle ganging; simple past and past participle ganged)

  1. (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.)
    • 1828, James Hogg, Mary Burnet:
      "And am I to meet my Mary at Moffat? Come away, little, dear, welcome body, thou blessed of heaven, come away, and taste of an auld shepherd's best cheer, and I'll gang foot for foot with you to Moffat, and my auld wife shall gang foot for foot with us too. I tell you, little, blessed, and welcome crile, come along with me."
Etymology 2

From Middle English gang, from Old English gang, from Proto-West Germanic *gang, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, from Proto-Indo-European , from *ǵʰengʰ-.

Cognate with Saterland Frisian Gong, Dutch gang, German Gang, Norwegian gang, Swedish gång, Icelandic gangur, sa-ved जंहस्.

Noun

gang (plural gangs)

  1. 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.
  2. A group of laborers under one foreman; a squad or workgang.
    a gang of sailors; a railroad gang; a labor gang or pool.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. (US) A chain gang.
  7. 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.
  8. A set; all required for an outfit.
    a new gang of stays.
  9. (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.
  10. (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.
  11. (now chiefly, dialectal) A going, journey; a course, path, track.
    • 1840, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Woodnotes I.3:
      In unploughed Maine he sought the lumberers’ gang / Where from a hundred lakes young rivers sprang
    • 1895, Frederick Tupper Jr., Anglo-Saxon Dæg-Mæl, Modern Language Association of America, page 229 ↗:
      Neither Marshall nor Bouterwek makes clear the connection existing between the Gang-days and the Major and Minor Litanies.
  12. (obsolete) An outhouse: an outbuilding used as a lavatory.
    • c. 1000, Aelfric, Homilies, Vol. I, page 290:
      Þaða he to gange com.
  13. (AAVE, used in the vocative) A term of address for a group, particularly when cautioning them or offering advice.
Synonyms Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Verb

gang (gangs, present participle ganging; simple past and past participle ganged)

  1. (transitive) To attach similar items together to form a larger unit.
    • 1981, Human Engineering Design Criteria for Military Systems, United States. Department of Defense, page 58:
      Volume controls may be ganged to mode switches to provide maximum output […]
Etymology 3

See gan.

Verb
  1. Pronunciation spelling of gan
Etymology 4

Shortening of gangbang.

Verb

gang (gangs, present participle ganging; simple past and past participle ganged)

  1. Synonym of gangbang
Noun

gang

  1. (mining) Alternative form of gangue


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