banger

noun

bang·​er ˈbaŋ-ər How to pronounce banger (audio)
1
British : sausage
2
British : firecracker
3
British : jalopy
4
informal : a forceful and aggressive athlete
Williamson, the 6- 7, 245-pound forward, is a versatile banger who loves to play inside and has a deft shooting touch.William C. Phoden
5
slang : a member of a street gang : gangbanger
He is disciplined, regimented, right down to the humiliating yet soothing ritual of picking up after his dog as he walks through the hood, past scornful young bangersMike Newirth
6
slang : an energetic song that is very striking or extraordinary
… it's a near-perfect hip-hop album for 2008, loaded with hardcore bangers, pop-friendly hooks, party anthems and confessional lyrics …Chuck Arnold
7
informal : an automobile or engine with a specified number of cylinders
used in combination
When he first started driving Toyotas, they were four-bangers or V-6s …Jerry Garrett

Examples of banger in a Sentence

bangers and mash is classic British pub cuisine
Recent Examples on the Web Daisy Jones and the Six’s in-universe album Aurora was a banger. Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 6 Mar. 2024 The smash has been reaching the highest rungs on music charts all around the world for more than half a year now, with Australia being perhaps the last country to accept the electro-pop cut as a banger. Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Pharrell and Miley Cyrus have another banger on the way. Michael Saponara, Billboard, 23 Feb. 2024 Reneau is the low-post banger, emerging as the stretch-four of some future NBA team’s dreams. Gregg Doyel, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Jan. 2024 Watch Kate McKinnon and friends perform their new banger in the video above. Shania Russell, EW.com, 17 Dec. 2023 The soundtrack, packed with Britpop bangers and indie ballads timed to coincide loosely with the date of each episode, is a delight unto itself. TIME, 6 Feb. 2024 Following a Delaware court’s decision to block Musk’s compensation package based on the evidence that the Tesla board was engaging in cronyism, WSJ is back with another banger connecting those board members to Musk. Bradley Brownell / Jalopnik, Quartz, 5 Feb. 2024 The quintet — Timberlake plus JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick and Joey Fatone — reunited in the studio to record the song the infectious pop banger — calling back the ‘90s and ‘00s icons’ early boy band sound, while giving it a contemporary update with a disco-pop beat. Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'banger.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of banger was in 1915

Dictionary Entries Near banger

Cite this Entry

“Banger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/banger. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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