Ring — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /ˈriŋ/

Meaning & Definition of Ring

Ring (noun)

  1. a circular band for holding, connecting, hanging, pulling, packing, or sealing
  2. a circlet usually of precious metal worn especially on the finger
  3. a circular line, figure, or object
  4. a set of bells
  5. a clear resonant sound made by or resembling that made by vibrating metal
  6. resonant tone, sonority

Ring (verb)

  1. to provide with a ring
  2. to place or form a ring around, encircle
  3. girdle
  4. to sound resonantly or sonorously
  5. to be filled with a reverberating sound, resound
  6. to have the sensation of being filled with a humming sound

Ring (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a group involved in secret or criminal activities

    "a ring of counterfeiters passing phony $20 bills"

    similar: cabal, conspiracy, crew, gang, Mafia, mob, syndicate
    related: bunch, circle, clan, clique, coterie, coven, crowd, galère, lot, network, pack, set, junta, oligarchy

  2. a circular strip

    "a metal ring encircled the barrel"

    similar: band, circle, eye, hoop, loop, round
    related: belt, cincture, collar, girdle, wreath, annulet, becket, coil, curl, furl, hank, spiral, spire, twirl, whorl

  3. a group of people sharing a common interest and relating together socially

    "a gaming ring that meets once a week to play"

    similar: body, bunch, circle, clan, clique, community, coterie, coven, crowd, fold, galère, gang, klatch, lot, network, pack, set
    related: charmed circle, elite, in-group, closed shop, club, college, fellowship, guild, league, organization, society, camp, faction, sect, side, tribe, mess, squad, brotherhood, fraternity, order, sisterhood, sodality, sorority, commune, alliance, bloc, coalition, confederation, congress, council, federation, union
    near: loner, individualist

  4. something with a perfectly round circumference

    "the coffee cup left a ring on the table"

    similar: circle, cirque, round, roundel
    related: circlet, ringlet, ellipse, loop, oval, ball, globe, orb, sphere

  5. a communication by telephone

    "give me a ring when you're ready to go"

    similar: buzz, call
    related: callback, cold call, conference call, message, toll call, voice mail

Ring (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to form a circle around

    "tall cypress trees ringing the park"

    similar: circle, compass, embrace, encircle, enclose, encompass, environ, gird, girdle, surround, wreathe
    related: circumscribe, close in, cordon (off), fence (in), hem (in), wall, beset, besiege, entrench, invest, swarm

  2. to travel completely around

    "the line of season ticket buyers ringed the block"

    similar: circle, circuit, circumnavigate, circumvent, compass, encircle, girdle, orbit, round
    related: circumambulate, cross, perambulate, traverse

  3. to make the clear sound heard when metal vibrates

    "I didn't hear the doorbell ring"

    similar: bong, chime, knell, peal, toll
    related: chink, clang, clank, clash, clink, ding, ding-dong, gong, jangle, jingle, ping, plink, plunk, tang, tingle, tinkle, echo, resonate, resound, reverberate

Related Entry: Ring (up) (verb)

Ring (up) is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for ring (up), not for ring.

  1. to make a telephone call to

    "our friend rang us up to see if we wanted to go to a cricket match"

    similar: call, dial, phone, telephone
    related: beep, buzz, call in, cold-call

Related Entry: Ring up (verb)

Ring up is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for ring up, not for ring.

  1. to obtain (as a goal) through effort

    "touted the many diplomatic triumphs that the president supposedly rang up in his first term"

    similar: achieve, attain, bag, chalk up, clock (up) (chiefly British), gain, hit, log, make, notch (up), rack up, score, win
    related: acquire, capture, carry, draw, garner, get, land, obtain, procure, realize, secure, amount (to), approach, equal, match, measure up (to), meet, rival, tie, touch, beat, excel, outdo, surpass, top
    near: fall short (of), miss, fail (at), lose

Related Entry: Ring down the curtain (on) (phrase)

Ring down the curtain (on) is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for ring down the curtain (on), not for ring.

  1. to bring (an event) to a natural or appropriate stopping point

    "The singer rang down the curtain on the performance with her most famous song."

    similar: close, close out, complete, conclude, end, finish, round (off or out), terminate, wind up, wrap up, put paid to (chiefly British)
    related: climax, crown, consummate, perfect, halt, stop, suspend
    opposite: begin, commence, inaugurate, open, start

Related Entry: Ring road (noun)

Ring road is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for ring road, not for ring.

  1. as in bypass, parkway

    similar: beltway, bypass, parkway, autobahn, autoroute, autostrada, dual carriageway (chiefly British), interstate, motorway (chiefly British), superhighway, corniche, switchback, causeway, through street, arterial, artery, avenue, boulevard, carriageway (British), drag, drive, expressway, freeway, high road, highway, pass, pike, road, roadway, route, row, street, thoroughfare, thruway, trace, turnpike, way, high street (British), Main Street, backstreet, branch, bystreet, byway, crossroad, secondary road, shunpike, side road, side street, alley, alleyway, circle, lane, laneway (British), mews (chiefly British), place

Related Entry: Ring roads (noun)

Ring roads is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for ring roads, not for ring.

  1. as in bypasses, parkways

    similar: beltways, bypasses, parkways, autobahns, autoroutes, autostradas, dual carriageways (chiefly British), interstates, motorways (chiefly British), superhighways, corniches, switchbacks, causeways, through streets, arterials, arteries, avenues, boulevards, carriageways (British), drags, drives, expressways, freeways, high roads, highways, passes, pike, roads, roadways, routes, rows, streets, thoroughfares, thruways, traces, turnpikes, ways, high streets (British), Main Streets, backstreets, branches, bystreets, byways, crossroads, secondary roads, shunpikes, side roads, side streets, alleys, alleyways, circles, lanes, laneways (British), mews (chiefly British), places

Related Entry: Three-ring circus (noun)

Three-ring circus is a different word from Ring. The synonyms below are for three-ring circus, not for ring.

  1. a place of uproar or confusion

    "the house has been a three-ring circus ever since the kids got back from summer camp"

    similar: babel, bedlam, circus, madhouse, scrum (British)
    related: bustle, commotion, pandemonium, racket, ruckus, tumult, turmoil, brouhaha, clamor, clatter, din, hubbub, noise, chaos, confusion, disarrangement, disarray, disorder, havoc, hell, mess, muss, shambles
    near: arcadia, heaven, paradise, utopia, order, orderliness, organization, calm, lull, peace, respite, hush, quiet, silence, stillness

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Ring

The most common words with a similar meaning to Ring:

cabal, conspiracy, crew, gang, Mafia, mob, syndicate, band, circle, eye, hoop, loop, round, body, bunch, clan, clique, community, coterie, coven, crowd, fold, galère, klatch, lot, network, pack, set, cirque, roundel, buzz, call, compass, embrace, encircle, enclose, encompass, environ, gird, girdle

Related Words for Ring

junta, oligarchy, belt, cincture, collar, wreath, annulet, becket, coil, curl, furl, hank, spiral, spire, twirl, whorl, charmed circle, elite, in-group, closed shop, club, college, fellowship, guild, league, organization, society, camp, faction, sect

Near Antonyms of Ring

loner, individualist

Word Forms of Ring

Inflections: ringed, ringing, rang, rung

Derived words: ringlike (adjective)

Origin & Etymology of Ring

Middle English, going back to Old English hring (masculine strong noun), going back to Germanic *hrenga- (whence also Old Frisian hring, ring "ring," Old Saxon hring "chain mail," Old High German ring, rinh "ring," Old Icelandic hringr), going back to dialectal Indo-European *krengho-, *krongho-, whence also Old Church Slavic krǫgŭ "circle, ring," Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian krûg, Polish krąg

First known use: before 12th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Ring

Words & Phrases Containing Ring

ring a bell, ring-a-levio, ring-around-the-rosy, ring-billed gull

Frequently Asked Questions about Ring

What does "Ring" mean?

"Ring" means a circular band for holding, connecting, hanging, pulling, packing, or sealing. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: a circular band for holding, connecting, hanging, pulling, packing, or sealing. It has 8 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Ring"?

Other words for "Ring" include cabal, conspiracy, crew, gang, Mafia, mob, syndicate and band. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Ring" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Ring"?

There are 149 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Ring". Common alternatives include cabal, conspiracy, crew, gang, Mafia, mob, syndicate, band, circle and eye.

How do you use "Ring" in a sentence?

Examples of "Ring" in a sentence: "a ring of counterfeiters passing phony $20 bills"; "a metal ring encircled the barrel"; "a gaming ring that meets once a week to play".

Is "Ring" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Ring" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Ring" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A2-level word, "Ring" is typical of Cambridge A2 Key (KET), PTE Academic 30–42, TOEIC Listening & Reading 225+.

How do you pronounce "Ring"?

"Ring" is pronounced /ˈriŋ/.

What is the origin of the word "Ring"?

"Ring" comes from Middle English, going back to Old English hring (masculine strong noun), going back to Germanic *hrenga- (whence also Old Frisian hring, ring "ring," Old Saxon hring "chain mail," Old High German ring, rinh "ring," Old Icelandic hringr), going back to dialectal Indo-European *krengho-, *krongho-, whence also Old Church Slavic krǫgŭ "circle, ring," Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian krûg, Polish krąg. First known use: before 12th century.