tang

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tang^¹

/ˈtæŋ/
[ˈtʰæŋ]
/ˈteɪ̯ŋ/
[ˈtʰeɪ̯ŋ]
/ˈtɛ̃ŋ/
[ˈtʰɛ̃ŋ]

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

From Middle English tange, variant of tonge (“tongs, fang”), from Old Norse tangi (“pointed metal tool”), perhaps related to Old Norse tunga (“tongue”). But see also Middle Dutch tanger (“sharp, tart, pinching”).

noun tangs

A refreshingly sharp aroma or flavor. a tang of citrus
Similar: bite, piquancy, spiciness, twang, zing · Opposite: blandness, dullness
A strong or offensive taste; especially, a taste of something extraneous to the thing itself. a tang of cellar
Similar: twang
figuratively A sharp, specific flavor or tinge. a tang of pedantry
A projecting part of an object by means of which it is secured to a handle, or to some other part. (archaic)
Similar: fang
The part of a knife, fork, file, or other instrument or hand tool, which is inserted into the handle. full-tang
Similar: fang
The part of a sword blade to which the handle is fastened. I spent the evening collecting the abandoned nests of birds from a rock face a half league distant, and that night I struck fire from the tang of Terminus Est and boiled the coarse meal (which took a long time to cook, because of the altitude) and ate it.
Similar: fang
The projecting part of the breech of a musket barrel, by which the barrel is secured to the stock. The rifle carried a vernier sight on the tang[…]
Similar: fang
A shuffleboard paddle.
obsolete Obsolete form of tongue 1667, John Lacy, Sauny the Scot: Or, the Taming of the Shrew, Act V, Sauny Hear ye, sir; could not ye mistake, and pull her tang out instead of her teeth?
broadly Anything resembling a tongue in form or position, such as the tongue of a buckle.

tang^²

/ˈtæŋ/
[ˈtʰæŋ]
/ˈteɪ̯ŋ/
[ˈtʰeɪ̯ŋ]
/ˈtɛ̃ŋ/
[ˈtʰɛ̃ŋ]

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

Imitative

noun tangs

A sharp, twanging sound; an unpleasant tone; a twang.

verb tangs · tanging · tanged

dated To strike two metal objects together loudly in order to persuade a swarm of honeybees to land so it may be captured by the beekeeper.
To make a ringing sound; to ring. let thy tongue tang arguments of state

tang^³

/ˈtæŋ/
[ˈtʰæŋ]
/ˈteɪ̯ŋ/
[ˈtʰeɪ̯ŋ]
/ˈtɛ̃ŋ/
[ˈtʰɛ̃ŋ]

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

Probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Danish tang (“seaweed”), Swedish tång, Icelandic þang

noun tangs

countable, rare, uncountable knotted wrack, Ascophyllum nodosum (coarse blackish seaweed)

tang^⁴

/ˈtæŋ/
[ˈtʰæŋ]
/ˈteɪ̯ŋ/
[ˈtʰeɪ̯ŋ]
/ˈtɛ̃ŋ/
[ˈtʰɛ̃ŋ]

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

Clipping of poontang.

noun tangs

countable, vulgar The vagina or vulva. The guys like to look at her tang, because that's how they are […]
uncountable, vulgar Sexual intercourse with a woman

tang^⁵

/ˈtæŋ/
[ˈtʰæŋ]
/ˈteɪ̯ŋ/
[ˈtʰeɪ̯ŋ]
/ˈtɛ̃ŋ/
[ˈtʰɛ̃ŋ]

Rhymes with -æŋ

Where it comes from

Unknown

noun tangs

Any of a group of saltwater fish from the family Acanthuridae, especially the genus Zebrasoma.
Similar: surgeonfish

Tang^⁶

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Mandarin 唐 (Táng).

proper noun T'ang · Tʻang

Tang Dynasty, the imperial dynasty of China which reigned from 618 to 907. The two sculptures, which were part of religious rites, belong to the Tang dynasty, which ruled between 618 and 907 AD and is considered a golden period of the Chinese civilization.
Later Tang, the Turkic dynasty of China which lasted from 923 to 936. Empress Liu (ca. 890-926 A.D.), whose birthplace was Chenan in Wei (now Chenan county, Hebei province), was the wife of Li Cunxu, who reigned as Emperor Zhuangzong, during the Tang dynasty.
Southern Tang. A kingdom in China which existed between 937 and 975.
Any of a number of places in China.
A county of Baoding, Hebei, China. A biography of Hu claims that Hu's attitudes changed in 1961, after he was sent to supervise agricultural policy changes in Tang county, Hebei province.
A Chinese surname from Mandarin.

Tang^⁷

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Mandarin 湯 /汤 (Tāng).

proper noun Tangs · T'ang

A Chinese surname from Mandarin.

Tang^⁸

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Cantonese 滕 (tang4).

proper noun Tangs

A Chinese surname from Cantonese.

Tang^⁹

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Cantonese 鄧 /邓 (dang6).

proper noun Tangs

A Chinese surname from Cantonese.

Tang¹⁰

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Teochew 陳 /陈 (dang5).

proper noun Tangs

A Chinese surname from Teochew.

Tang¹¹

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Hokkien 董 (táng).

proper noun Tangs

A Chinese surname from Hokkien.

Tang¹²

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Persian تنگ (tang, “narrow, tight”).

proper noun

Any of a number of places, including a village in Iran and a village in Afghanistan.

Tang¹³

/tæŋ/
/tɑːŋ/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Dzongkha སྟང (stang).

proper noun

A gewog of Bumthang District, Bhutan.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: piquancy, piquance, tanginess, flavor, savour, flavour, sapidity, savor, relish, nip, smack, zest, bladderwrack, black rockweed, bladder fucus, fucus serratus

Translations

Every language

noun figuratively: sharp, specific flavor

Deutsch	Beigeschmack

noun projecting part of an object by means of which it is secured to some other part

Italiano	codolo

noun part of small instrument inserted into handle

Español	espiga
한국어	슴베 seumbe
Deutsch	Erl, Angel
Italiano	codolo
Русский	хвостовик xvostovik

noun refreshingly sharp aroma

Italiano	aroma, olezzo, effluvio

noun strong or offensive taste

Français	saveur piquante
Deutsch	Beigeschmack
Italiano	sapore intenso, gusto, retrogusto, timbro

noun part of a sword blade

Español	espiga
日本語	茎 nakago
Português	espiga, espigão
Français	queue
Italiano	codolo

noun anything resembling a tongue in form or position

Italiano	linguetta

noun fish from the Acanthuridae family

Português	peixe-cirurgião
Italiano	pesce chirurgo

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"tang." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tang. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

tang. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tang

Chicago

"tang." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tang.

BibTeX

@misc{tang_2026,
  title = {tang},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tang},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}

tang

AI In plain words

tang¹

Where it comes from

noun tangs

tang²

Where it comes from

noun tangs

verb tangs · tanging · tanged

tang³

Where it comes from

noun tangs

tang⁴

Where it comes from

noun tangs

tang⁵

Where it comes from

noun tangs

Tang⁶

Where it comes from

proper noun T'ang · Tʻang

Tang⁷

Where it comes from

proper noun Tangs · T'ang

Tang⁸

Where it comes from

proper noun Tangs

Tang⁹

Where it comes from

proper noun Tangs

Tang10

Where it comes from

proper noun Tangs

Tang11

Where it comes from

proper noun Tangs

Tang12

Where it comes from

proper noun

Tang13

Where it comes from

proper noun

Thesaurus

Translations

noun figuratively: sharp, specific flavor

noun projecting part of an object by means of which it is secured to some other part

noun part of small instrument inserted into handle

noun refreshingly sharp aroma

noun strong or offensive taste

noun part of a sword blade

noun anything resembling a tongue in form or position

noun fish from the Acanthuridae family

tang^¹

tang^²

tang^³

tang^⁴

tang^⁵

Tang^⁶

Tang^⁷

Tang^⁸

Tang^⁹

Tang¹⁰

Tang¹¹

Tang¹²

Tang¹³