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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

banjo.

A stringed musical instrument (chordophone), usually with a round body, a membrane-like soundboard and a fretted neck, played by plucking or strumming the strings.

5 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈbæn.dʒəʊ/UK/ˈbæn.d͡ʒoʊ/US
  1. A stringed musical instrument (chordophone), usually with a round body, a membrane-like soundboard and a fretted neck, played by plucking or strumming the strings.

    I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee...
  2. Any of various similar musical instruments, such as the Tuvan doshpuluur, with a membrane-like soundboard.

  3. An object shaped like a banjo, especially a frying pan or a shovel.

    slang
  4. A cul-de-sac with a round end.

    UK
  5. A miner's round-nosed shovel.

  6. An egg sandwich fried on a flattop and served in a bun like a burger, ellipsis of egg banjo.

    Malaysia
  7. The frenulum of the penis.

    slang · vulgar
Where this word comes from

From the pronunciation of African slaves, of unknown ultimate origin. Possibly a corruption of bandore (from Spanish bandurria), alternatively from a West African language such as Mandinka banjul, or Kimbundu mbanza.

verb/ˈbæn.dʒəʊ/UK/ˈbæn.d͡ʒoʊ/US
  1. To play a banjo.

  2. To beat, to knock down.

    UK · slang · transitive
  3. To shell or attack (a target).

    UK · slang · transitive
Where this word comes from

From the pronunciation of African slaves, of unknown ultimate origin. Possibly a corruption of bandore (from Spanish bandurria), alternatively from a West African language such as Mandinka banjul, or Kimbundu mbanza.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.