# band

Pronunciation: say "BAND" /bænd/

## Noun

1. A group of musicians who play together, such as a rock group, a jazz band, or a concert or marching band.
   - Simple: A group of people who play music together.
   - _The band rehearsed the new set list every evening that week._
   - _Touring bands often hire extra players for larger venues._
2. A loosely organized group of people joined by a shared aim, such as thieves or smugglers.
   - Simple: A group of people who join together for the same purpose.
   - _A ragged band of refugees crossed the mountains before winter._
   - _Rival bands of smugglers fought over the coastal routes._
3. A flat, thin strip or loop of material, such as elastic, fabric, or metal, put around something to hold it together, strengthen it, or decorate it.
   - Simple: A thin strip of material that goes around something to hold it, make it stronger, or decorate it.
   - _She secured the rolled blueprints with a wide elastic band._
   - _Each pallet of bricks was held by steel bands._
4. A ring, such as a wedding ring, or a ring fastened to a bird's leg to identify it. *(US)*
   - Simple: A ring you wear, like a wedding ring, or a small ring put on a bird's leg.
   - _The jeweler engraved their initials inside the platinum band._
   - _Each captured warbler wore a numbered metal band._
5. A stripe or strip of color, texture, or decoration that differs from the area around it.
   - Simple: A stripe of a different color or pattern across something.
   - _A pale band of sandstone ran through the canyon wall._
   - _The marble was streaked with bands of gray and white._
6. A particular part of the electromagnetic spectrum, spanning a defined range of frequencies.
   - Simple: One section of the range of radio waves or light.
   - _The satellite transmits data on a high-frequency band._
   - _Astronomers observed the galaxy across several bands of the spectrum._
10. A strap or belt that serves as a working part of a machine.
   - Simple: A belt or strap inside a machine.
   - _A loose drive band caused the lathe to lose power under load._
   - _The technician tightened the bands that link the two rollers._
12. A small group of people living in a simple society, distinct from tribes, chiefdoms, and nations.
   - Simple: A small group of people who live together in a simple society, not a tribe or nation.
   - _Anthropologists classify the band as the simplest level of human social organization._
   - _Foraging bands rarely number more than a few dozen people._
13. A thousand dollars, originally a wad of bills held together by a band; by extension, a grand or money in general. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A thousand dollars in cash, or money in general.
   - _He dropped a band on a new set of speakers without blinking._
   - _They counted out twenty bands on the table before the deal._
14. A group of closely spaced energy levels available to electrons in a solid material.
   - Simple: A group of energy levels that electrons can have inside a solid material.
   - _The valence band holds the electrons bound to individual atoms._
   - _Conduction occurs when electrons reach an empty band above the gap._
15. A distinct line produced by techniques such as chromatography or electrophoresis that marks a separated component.
   - Simple: A line or stripe that shows up when scientists separate the parts of a mixture.
   - _A bright band appeared halfway down the chromatography plate._
   - _Researchers compared the DNA bands to identify the sample._
16. Short for band government: the local government of a First Nations community in Canada. *(Canada)* — Ellipsis of band government
   - Simple: Short for band government. It means the elected council that runs a First Nations community.
   - _The band negotiated a land settlement with the federal government._
   - _The band passed a new housing bylaw at its meeting._
18. Two strips of linen hanging from the front of the neck as part of clerical, legal, or academic dress.
   - Simple: Two strips of white cloth worn hanging at the front of the neck as part of some formal robes.
   - _The minister's bands were freshly starched for the Sunday service._
   - _The judge wore a black robe with a white band hanging on each side of the collar._
19. A linen collar or ruff worn around the neck during the 16th and 17th centuries.
   - Simple: A linen collar or ruff worn around the neck in the 1500s and 1600s.
   - _The nobleman's starched band framed his face in the old painting._
   - _Elaborate lace bands were fashionable at court in those years._
8. A span of values, for example ages, incomes or prices, that makes up a single tier of a graded scale.
   - Simple: A group of numbers, like ages or prices, that counts as one level in a set of levels.
   - _After her promotion, her salary moved up a band._
   - _Players in the under-12 age band compete on a smaller field._

## Verb

7. To join together with others for a common purpose.
   - Simple: To come together as a group for the same purpose.
   - _The neighbors banded together to oppose the new highway._
   - _Small farmers band together to negotiate fairer prices._
9. To fasten an identifying ring around a bird's leg in order to track it.
   - Simple: To put a small ring on a bird's leg so it can be known later.
   - _Researchers band thousands of ducks each migration season._
   - _She banded the owl before releasing it back into the forest._
11. To fasten something using a band.
   - Simple: To tie or hold something using a band.
   - _Workers band the bundles of newspapers before delivery._
   - _She banded the loose cables together behind the desk._
17. To place students into separate teaching groups according to their perceived ability.
   - Simple: To put students into groups based on how well they are thought to do.
   - _Administrators band students by ability so lessons can match each group._
   - _The district banded incoming freshmen according to their test scores._

## Noun

20. A bond or fetter; whatever binds or restrains a person or thing. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A tie, chain, or duty that binds or holds someone.
21. A pledge or security offered as a guarantee of good faith or payment. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A promise or something given to guarantee a debt or a deal.

## Other meanings

- (noun) Something that serves as a means of union or connection between people; a tie.
- (noun) In bookbinding, a strip running along the spine to which the pages are fastened.
- (noun) A molding, or set of moldings, that encircles the pillars and small shafts in Gothic architecture.
- (noun) Short for band cell: a young white blood cell with a curved nucleus that has no separate lobes.

## Origin

**Meanings 3–6, 8–11, 13–15, 18–21** — Old English beand, bænd or bend ("bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon") became Middle English band (also bond), and Old French bande later strengthened it. The line goes back to Proto-Germanic *bandą and finally to the Proto-Indo-European root *bʰendʰ- ("to tie, bind"). Bond, bind and bend are related English words, and Dutch and German Band are cognates.
**Meanings 1–2, 7, 12, 16–17** — This meaning came into Middle English as band from Old French bande, which took it from Old Occitan banda ("regiment of troops"). That word perhaps comes from Frankish *bend, going back to Proto-Germanic *bandiz and the Proto-Indo-European root *bʰendʰ- ("to tie, bond"). German Bande ("band") is comparable.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/band (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).