What does "band" mean?
A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A strip of material wrapped around things to hold them together.
Band
/bænd/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A strip of material wrapped around things to hold them together.
- Grammar: band is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: stripe, accouple, accumulate, ace bandage.
- Useful contrasts: disband, divide, erase.
- Usage evidence: The band played marvellously under the baton of a new conductor.
How to use "band"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "band" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "band" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "band" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "band" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "band" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "stripe" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "band", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A strip of material wrapped around things to hold them together.
"The Jones man was looking at her hard. Now he reached into the hatch of his vest and fetched out a couple of cigars, everlasting big ones, with gilt bands on them."
- 2 A group of musicians who perform together as an ensemble; sometimes, such a group working for a professional recording artist.
"musical band"
- 3 a thin flat strip of flexible material that is worn around the body or one of the limbs (especially to decorate the body) wordnet
- 4 A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A narrow strip of cloth or other material on clothing, to bind, strengthen, or ornament it.
"band and gusset and seam"
- 5 A type of orchestra originally playing janissary music; an instance of this type.
Show 33 more definitions
- 6 an adornment consisting of a strip of a contrasting color or material wordnet
- 7 A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A strip along the spine of a book where the pages are attached.
- 8 Ellipsis of marching band. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
- 9 a restraint put around something to hold it together wordnet
- 10 A strip of material used for strengthening or coupling.; A belt or strap that is part of a machine.
- 11 A group of people loosely united for a common purpose, such as a band of thieves.
"But in the mean time Robin Hood and his band lived quietly in Sherwood Forest, without showing their faces abroad, for Robin knew that it would not be wise for him to be seen in the neighborhood of Nottingham, those in authority being very wroth with him."
- 12 a strip of material attached to the leg of a bird to identify it (as in studies of bird migration) wordnet
- 13 A long strip of material, color, etc, that is different from the surrounding area.
"sandstone with bands of shale"
- 14 A small group of people living in a simple society, contrasted with tribes, chiefdoms, and nations.
- 15 a thin flat strip or loop of flexible material that goes around or over something else, typically to hold it together or as a decoration wordnet
- 16 A strip of decoration.; A continuous tablet, stripe, or series of ornaments, as of carved foliage, of colour, or of brickwork.
- 17 Ellipsis of band government. Canada, abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
- 18 a driving belt in machinery wordnet
- 19 A strip of decoration.; In Gothic architecture, the moulding, or suite of mouldings, which encircles the pillars and small shafts.
- 20 jewelry consisting of a circlet of precious metal (often set with jewels) worn on the finger wordnet
- 21 That which serves as the means of union or connection between persons; a tie.
"For that heroic band—those children of the furnace who, in regions like Texas and Tennessee, maintained their fidelity through terrible trials—we of the North felt for them, and profoundly we honor them."
- 22 a stripe or stripes of contrasting color wordnet
- 23 A linen collar or ruff worn in the 16th and 17th centuries.
- 24 a cord-like tissue connecting two larger parts of an anatomical structure wordnet
- 25 Two strips of linen hanging from the neck in front as part of a clerical, legal, or academic dress. in-plural
- 26 a range of frequencies between two limits wordnet
- 27 A part of the electromagnetic spectrum.
- 28 an unofficial association of people or groups wordnet
- 29 A group of energy levels in a solid state material.
"valence band; conduction band"
- 30 instrumentalists not including string players wordnet
- 31 A bond. obsolete
"OLd Iohn of Gaunt, time-honoured Lancaſter, Haſt thou according to thy oath and band Brought hither Henry Herford thy bold ſon: Heere to make good yͤ boiſtrous late appeale, Which then our leyſure would not let vs heare, Againſt the Duke of Norfolke, Thomas Mowbray?"
- 32 a group of musicians playing popular music for dancing wordnet
- 33 Pledge; security. obsolete
"He sent to her his basenet as a faithfull band."
- 34 A ring, such as a wedding ring (wedding band), or a ring put on a bird's leg to identify it. US, especially
- 35 Any distinguishing line formed by chromatography, electrophoresis etc
- 36 Ellipsis of band cell. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
- 37 A wad of money totaling $1K, held together by a band; (by extension) $1000, a grand; (by extension) money in-plural, often, slang
"She my trap queen, let her hit the bando / We be countin' up, watch how far them bands go"
- 38 A designated range of radio frequencies used for wireless communication.
Verb
- 1 To fasten with a band. transitive
"As he spake, his eyes rested on the graves below. "Yes," muttered the youth, "they are sufficient answer; they are indeed the end of all human hope." Mechanically he turned from one to another. Some were recently banded down with osiers, and the grass was varied with primrose roots; on some the foxglove grew luxuriantly, while others had a tombstone, carved with a name and a brief epitaph."
- 2 To group together for a common purpose; to confederate. intransitive
"And when it was day, certaine of the Iewes banded together, […]"
- 3 simple past and past participle of bind form-of, obsolete, participle, past
- 4 Obsolete form of bandy. alt-of, obsolete
- 5 attach a ring to the foot of, in order to identify wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To fasten an identifying band around the leg of (a bird). transitive
- 7 To group (students) together by perceived ability; to stream. transitive
- 8 bind or tie together, as with a band wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from German.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The band played marvellously under the baton of a new conductor."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "band"?
Common synonyms include: stripe, accouple, accumulate, ace bandage, act in concert, act together.
How do you use "band" in a sentence?
The band played marvellously under the baton of a new conductor.
How do you pronounce "band"?
Pronounced /bænd/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Inherited from Middle English band (also bond), from Old English beand, bænd, bend (“bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon, ornament, chaplet, crown”), from Proto-Germanic *bandą, *bandiz (“band, fetter”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to tie, bind”). Middle English band reinforced by Old French bande. Cognate with Dutch band, German Band, Danish bånd, Swedish band, Icelandic band (“band”). Related to bond, bind, bend.
Etymology 2
Derived from Middle English band, from Old French bande, from Old Occitan banda (“regiment of troops”), perhaps from Frankish *bend, from Proto-Germanic *bandiz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to tie; bond, band”). Compare German Bande (“band”).
Etymology 3
* English, German and Jewish surname, from the noun Band (“hoop, metal ring”). * Also as an English surname, variant of Bond. * Also as a German surname, pet from of Bernhard. * As a Dutch surname, from the place name (die) Bant.