American Heritage Dictionary Entry: band HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key. Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window. guide to the dictionary THE USAGE PANEL The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions. The Panelists NEED HELP SOLVING A CROSSWORD PUZZLE? Go to our Crossword Puzzle Solver and type in the letters that you know, and the Solver will produce a list of possible solutions. -- AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android. THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more. OPEN DICTIONARY PROJECT Share your ideas for new words and new meanings of old words! Start Sharing Now! -- See word lists from the best-selling 100 Words Series! Find out more! INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES? Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com band 1 (bănd) Share: Tweet n. 1. A thin strip of flexible material used to encircle and bind one object or to hold a number of objects together: a metal band around the bale of cotton. 2. A strip or stripe that contrasts with something else in color, texture, or material. 3. A narrow strip of fabric used to trim, finish, or reinforce articles of clothing. 4. Something that constrains or binds morally or legally: the bands of marriage and family. 5. A simple ring, especially a wedding ring. 6. a. A neckband or collar. b. bands The two strips hanging from the front of a collar as part of the dress of certain clerics, scholars, and lawyers. c. A high collar popular in the 1500s and 1600s. 7. a. Biology A chromatically, structurally, or functionally differentiated strip or stripe in or on an organism. b. Anatomy A cordlike tissue that connects or holds structures together. 8. Physics a. A specific range of wavelengths or frequencies of electromagnetic radiation. b. A range of very closely spaced electron energy levels in solids, the distribution and nature of which determine the electrical properties of a material. 9. Any of the distinct grooves on a long-playing phonograph record that contains an individual selection or a separate section of a whole. 10. A cord or strip across the back of a book to which the sheets or quires are attached. tr.v. band·ed, band·ing, bands 1. To tie, bind, or encircle with or as if with a band. 2. To mark or identify with a band: a program to band migrating birds. [Middle English bende (from Old English bend and from Old French bande, bende, of Germanic origin) and Middle English bond, band (from Old Norse, band; see bhendh- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. band 2 (bănd) Share: Tweet n. 1. a. A group of people: a band of outlaws. b. A group of animals. 2. a. Anthropology A unit of social organization especially among hunter-gatherers, consisting of a usually small number of families living together cooperatively. b. Canadian An aboriginal group officially recognized as an organized unit by the Canadian government. See Usage Note at First Nation. 3. A group of musicians who perform as an ensemble. v. band·ed, band·ing, bands v. tr. To assemble or unite in a group. v. intr. To form a group; unite: banded together for protection. [Early Modern English, from Middle French, troop identified by its standard, ultimately (probably via Old Provençal) from *banda, plural of Medieval Latin bandum, military standard, banner, of Germanic origin; see bhā-1 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices: Indo-European Roots Semitic Roots The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. 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