ring

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A circular band of metal or other material worn on the finger.

   She wore a gold ring on her left hand.

2. 2
   noun

   The clear sound made by a bell or telephone.

   I heard the ring of the church bell across the valley.

3. 3
   noun

   A group of people or objects arranged in a circle.

   The children sat in a ring around the storyteller.

4. 4
   noun

   A particular quality that something seems to have.

   Her excuse had the ring of truth to it.

Common collocations

• wear a ring Verb + noun
• gold ring Adjective + noun
• wedding ring Adjective + noun
• diamond ring Adjective + noun
• engagement ring Adjective + noun
• exchange rings Verb + noun

From Middle English ryng, from Old English hring (“ring, circle”), from Proto-West Germanic *hring, from Proto-Germanic *hringaz (“ring”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)krengʰ-, extended nasalized form of *(s)ker- (“to turn, bend”). Doublet of rank and rink, as well as indirectly range. Cognates * West Frisian ring * Low German Ring * Dutch ring * German Ring * Swedish ring * Finnish rengas More distantly cognate with Proto-Slavic *krǫgъ (whence Bulgarian кръг (krǎg), Polish krąg, Russian круг (krug)).

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