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Word a Day

ban

verb · /bæn/ · Level 1 · Starter

What does ban mean?

ban (verb): to prohibit; to interdict; to proscribe; to forbid or block from participation.

Definition: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

How do you use ban in a sentence?

How do you pronounce ban?

/bæn/ (IPA, American English). The app reads every word aloud.

Where does ban come from?

Inherited from Middle English bannen (“to summon; to banish; to curse”), partly from Old English bannan (“to summon, command, proclaim, call out”), from Proto-West Germanic *bannan; and partly from Old Norse banna (“to prohibit; to curse”).

Etymology: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Test yourself: do you know “ban”?

Tap an answer to check it. The same questions the app asks.

What does “ban” mean?

to squander (money or resources) uselessly; to spend (time) idly; to dissipate

Not quite: that's what waste means.

to point out; to discover; to direct to a knowledge of; to show; to make known

Not quite: that's what indicate means.

to prohibit; to interdict; to proscribe; to forbid or block from participation

Right! That's what “ban” means.

to arbitrate; to pass opinion on something, especially to settle a dispute etc

Not quite: that's what judge means.

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