banger

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableinformalBritish

   A sausage, especially the kind served with mashed potato in the British dish 'bangers and mash.'

   Grammar: Countable: one banger, a plate of bangers. Mainly British informal.

   Patterns

   • bangers and mash
   • fry bangers
   • pork bangers

   We had bangers and mash for dinner on Sunday.

   He threw a couple of bangers on the barbecue.

2. 2nouncountableslangBritish

   An old, noisy, or badly damaged car that still runs.

   Grammar: Countable: an old banger. British slang that is now common informal speech.

   Patterns

   • drive an old banger
   • a rusty banger

   He drove a battered old banger that barely passed its inspection.

   She sold her banger for two hundred dollars and bought a bike instead.

3. 3nouncountableslanginformal

   A song that is extremely energetic, catchy, or popular.

   Grammar: Countable: this track is a banger. Informal, common among young speakers.

   Patterns

   • a total banger
   • play bangers
   • the new single is a banger

   Every song on that album is a banger.

   The DJ played nothing but bangers all night.

Word forms

Common combinations

bangers and mash

Bangers and mash is classic British pub food.

an old banger

His old banger broke down twice on the way to work.

an absolute banger

Their latest single is an absolute banger.

Synonyms and how they differ

sausage

The neutral word; 'banger' is informal and usually refers to British-style sausages.

hit

For the music sense, 'hit' is neutral; 'banger' is slang and stresses energy and loudness.

clunker

For the car sense, 'clunker' also means an old failing vehicle, but is American rather than British.

Word family

bang verb

To hit or shut with a loud noise; the source of all the noun senses.

Commonly confused: banger or bangle?

Practice

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