bangle

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbæŋ.ɡəl/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æŋɡəl

Etymology 1

From Hindi बंग्ली (baṅglī, “glass bracelet”).

Noun

bangle (plural bangles)

1. A rigid bracelet or anklet, especially one with no clasp.
   • 1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “ch. 15”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:

     Mrs. MacAndrew smoothed down the lap of her gown, and gold bangles fell over her wrists.

Derived terms

• rosary bangle

 

Translations

a rigid bracelet or anklet, especially one with no clasp

• Assamese: খাৰু (kharu)
• Bengali: চুড়ি (bn) (cuṛi)
• Georgian: სამაჯური (samaǯuri)
• German: Armreif (de) m, Armring (de) m, Armspange f, Armreifen (de) m
• Hindi: बंग्ली f (baṅglī), चूड़ी (hi) f (cūṛī), कंगन (hi) m (kaṅgan)
• Italian: cerchietto (it) m, braccialetto (it) m, braccialetto da schiava m
• Japanese: バングル (banguru)
• Kannada: ಬಳೆ (kn) (baḷe)
• Malayalam: വള (ml) (vaḷa)
• Marathi: बांगडी (bāṅgḍī)
• Nepali: चुरा (curā)
• Ottoman Turkish: خلخال‎ (halhal)
• Punjabi: ਵੰਙ (vãṅ)
• Persian: النگو‎ (fa) (alangu)
• Russian: брасле́т (ru) m (braslét)
• Spanish: brazalete (es) m, pulsera (es) f, esclava (es) f
• Swahili: bangili (sw) class 9/10
• Tamil: வளையல் (ta) (vaḷaiyal), காப்பு (ta) (kāppu)
• Telugu: గాజు (te) (gāju)
• Turkish: halhal (tr), bilezik (tr)

Etymology 2

Unknown, yet probably from bang +‎ -le (frequentative suffix).

Verb

bangle (third-person singular simple present bangles, present participle bangling, simple past and past participle bangled)

1. (transitive, obsolete) to beat about or beat down, as corn by the wind.
2. (obsolete or dialectal) to waste away little by little; squander carelessly; fritter (away).
   • 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC:

     , New York Review Books 2001, p.273:

     Thus betwixt hope and fear, suspicions, angers […] betwixt falling in, falling out, etc., we bangle away our best days, befool out our times […].

   If we bangle away the legacy of peace left us by Christ, it is a sign of our want of regard for him. — Duty of Man.

3. (intransitive) (falconry) to beat about in the air; flutter: said of a hawk which does not rise steadily and then swoop down upon its prey.
4. (intransitive) to flap or hang down loosely, as a hat brim or an animal's ear.

Derived terms

• bangle ear

 

Etymology 3

Apparently from bang (verb) +‎ -le (instrumental suffix), perhaps ultimately connected with Proto-Germanic *bangilaz. Compare Dutch bengel, German Bengel.

Noun

bangle (plural bangles)

1. (dialectal) The cut branch of a tree; a large, rough stick; the largest piece of wood in a bundle of twigs

Anagrams

• Bangel, Bengal