▪ I. whang, n.1
(hwaŋ)
Also wang. Also 6 Sc. quhayng, quhaing, 7 whange, 9 Sc. quhang; 7 whanck, 7– whank.
[Variant of thwang, thong.]
1. = thong n. Sc. and dial.
| 1536 Bellenden Cron. Scot. (1821) II. 32 Quhen Hengist had gottin the grant of sa mekill land as he micht circle about with ane bull hide, he schure it in maist crafty and subtell quhaingis. a 1578 Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 117 Ane gret scheiff of arrowis knet together in ane quhange of leathir. a 1598 D. Ferguson Scot. Prov. (1785) 647 Mony ane tines the haff-merk whinger for the halfpenny whang. 1670 Ray Prov. 289 Of other mens lether, men takes large whanges. 1691 ― Coll. Words (ed. 2) 151 Shoe-whang. 1717 De Foe Mem. Ch. Scot. iii. 268, I had not the worth of a Spur Whang of any Man's, but was mounted of Horse and Arms of my own. 1737–8 MS. Par. Bk., Pannal, Yks., Church gate mending a beast face and Whangs, 1s. od. 1818 Scott Rob Roy xxxiii, Never weigh a MacGregor's bluid against a broken whang o' leather. 1837 Sir F. Palgrave Merch. & Friar i. 16 Their sacks..tightly bound by many a whang and thong. |
2. A large or thick slice, esp. of cheese, bread, etc. Sc. and dial.
| 1684 Meriton Yorksh. Dial. 57 What a whanck's there. a 1700 Gaberlunzie Man viii. in Ramsay Tea-t. Misc. (1733) I. 86 The twa, with kindly sport and glee, Cut frae a new cheese a whang. 1818 Hogg Tales & Sk., Adv. Allan Gordon (1836) I. 264 A good whang of solid fish. 1866 W. Henderson Folk Lore N. Counties 3 The whang must be taken from the edge of the cheese, and divided into portions. 1879 Stevenson Trav. Cevennes 33 With a glass, a whang of bread, and an iron fork, the table is completely laid. |
3. The penis. slang (orig. and chiefly U.S.).
| 1935 H. L. Davis Honey in Horn iii. 34 Leave them horses alone or I'll cut your whang off. 1949 H. Miller Sexus viii. 250 You say he's got a terrific wang, Bill. I don't know how he ever gets it in there. 1952 N. Mailer Barbary Shore x. 89 Guinevere..went on at length with one of her inexhaustible stories about a lover and his whang. 1959 M. Richler Apprenticeship D. Kravitz i. x. 60 He's got a whang that could choke a horse. I know, we had a leak together once. 1969 K. Vonnegut Slaughterhouse-Five v. 115 Montana was naked, and so was Billy, of course. He had a tremendous wang. 1981 G. Hammond Revenge Game ix. 102 Maybe you're not as ready with your whang as you were, or maybe you couldn't keep it up―. |
▪ II. whang, n.2 Chiefly dial.
[Echoic. Cf. whang v.2]
A resounding blow or stroke, or the sound of such a blow; a bang.
| 1824 Mactaggart Gallovid. Encycl., Whang..a blow, or rather a lash with a whip. 1868 Kinglake Crimea IV. v. 279 The ‘whang’ of the round-shot. 1889 ‘Q’ Splendid Spur ix. 130 Soon the whang-whang! of the hammer below rous'd me. 1891 Century Mag. Dec. 246 Our gear came down with a whang as the ship forged ahead. |
▪ III. whang, v.1
Also wang.
[Variant of thong v.; cf. whang n.1]
1. a. trans. To beat as with a thong; to lash (also fig.); gen. to beat, strike, hit or knock violently. Sc. and dial.
| 1684 Meriton Yorksh. Dial. 54 If she hear she'l whang me varra sayer. 1786 Burns Ordination iii, Heresy is in her pow'r, And gloriously she'll whang her. 1889 Baden-Powell Pigsticking 21 A savage would consider it the height of sport to go and whang a pig on the head. |
b. To throw, drive, pull, etc. with force or with violent impact. trans. and intr. dial. and colloq.
| 1820 Clare Rural Life (ed. 2) 60 I'd just streak'd down, and with a swish Whang'd off my hat soak'd like a fish. 1899 Crockett Black Douglas xix, Whang the steel bolt through his ribs. Ibid. xxxiv, Bring back every true lad that can whang bow, or gar sword-iron whistle. 1905 in Eng. Dial. Dict. VI. 439/2 He wanged a stone at me. 1914 C. Mackenzie Sinister Street II. iii. i. 500 The governor wanged them into my lap. 1965 Punch 22 Sept. 420/1 Anybody wanting to wang up a skyscraper or indeed any building of size and importance will have to publish a comprehensible model or drawing. 1980 D. Bogarde Gentle Occupation ix. 249 Suddenly a stone spun out of nowhere and whanged harmlessly against the bonnet of the car. 1984 New Yorker 23 Apr. 80/3 Bad bush pilots..cross the margins of heavy weather and whang into mountains. Ibid. 29 Oct. 140/3 Mondale was ready for him and whanged the line back. |
2. To cut in ‘whangs’ or large slices. Also absol. or intr. Sc. and dial.
| a 1743 Argyll is my name in Whitelaw Bk. Scot. Song (1866) 224 I'll aff to the Highlands as hard's I can reel. And whang at the bannocks o' barley meal. 1801 W. Beattie Tales (1813) 8 At last, came cheese..My uncle set it to his breast And whang'd it down. |
▪ IV. whang, v.2
Also wang.
[Cf. whang n.2]
a. intr. To make a loud resounding noise, as of a heavy blow or explosion, of shot flying through the air, of a loudspeaker, of a speeding car, etc.
| 1875 Kinglake Crimea V. vi. 426 Another of the mighty 18-pounder shot flew whanging over the heads of our soldiery. 1912 Masefield Widow in Bye Street ii. liv, The organ whangs, the giddy horses reel. 1952 Observer 2 Nov. 3/5 The words from the loudspeaker wang back from the quiet village houses, but the doors remain closed. 1977 Motor 19 Feb. 24/1 You rush from the pits just as the leading Porsches wang past. |
b. The vb.-stem used adverbially: cf. bang v. 8.
| 1844 Kinglake Eothen xxi. 335, I..went falling, and falling through air till my crown came whang against the ground. 1855 Browning Up at a Villa ix, Bang, whang, whang goes the drum. |
▪ V. whang
dial. f. wang1.