• a typically circular band of metal or other durable material, especially one of gold or other precious metal, often set with gems, for wearing on the finger as an ornament, a token of betrothal or marriage, etc.
• a similar band of metal or other durable material worn as an ornament on another part of the body, such as on the toe or in a piercing.
2. anything resembling a band or circle: Fluff the napkins and pull them through the napkin rings. He lit his cigarette and blew a smoke ring.
3. a circular or surrounding line or mark: After a long, sleepless night, there were dark rings around his eyes.
4. a circular course: A group of us kids were playing one of those games where you have to dance in a ring.
5. a number of people or things situated in a circle or in an approximately circular arrangement: a ring of stones;a ring of hills;a ring of spectators.
6. the outside edge of a circular object; rim: When the two coins are compared, there are differences in the color of the brass alloy used for the outer ring.
7. an enclosed area, often circular, as for a sports contest or exhibition: a circus ring.
8. a bullring.
9. an enclosure in which boxing and wrestling matches take place, usually consisting of a square, canvas-covered platform with surrounding ropes that are supported at each corner by posts: It was nearly a year before he recovered from his injuries and was ready to box again, but he's back in the ring tonight.
10. the sport of boxing; prizefighting: In the heyday of the ring, fighters could make a living at their sport.
11. (formerly in the United States, now only in Britain) an area in a racetrack where bookmakers take bets.
12. a group of people cooperating for unethical, illicit, or illegal purposes, such as to control stock-market prices, manipulate politicians, or elude the law: The police busted a ring of smugglers.
13. a single turn in a spiral or helix or in a spiral course.
14. the area or space between two concentric circles.
15. annual ring.
16. a circle of bark cut from around a tree.
17. a number of atoms so united that they may be graphically represented in cyclic form.
18. rowlock (def. 1).
19. a bowlike or circular piece at the top of an anchor, to which the chain or cable is secured.
20. (in a ring-spinning frame ) a circular track of highly polished steel on which the traveler moves and which twists the yarn by variations in its vertical movement.
21. a unit of measurement of the diameter of cigars, equal to 1/64 of an inch.
22. piston ring.
23. a set that is closed under the operations of addition and multiplication and that is an Abelian group with respect to addition and an associative semigroup with respect to multiplication and in which the distributive laws relating the two operations hold.

24. to surround; encircle: The lake is ringed with forest and farmland.
25. to hem in (animals) by riding or circling about them: The cowboys ringed the cattle they would be driving to market.
26. girdle (def. 11).
27. (in horseshoes, ringtoss, etc.) to encircle (a stake or peg) with a ring, horseshoe, etc.
28. to insert a ring through the nose of (an animal).

29. to form a ring or rings: A crowd of onlookers ringed around the man who had fallen.
30. to move in a ring or a constantly curving course: The road rings around the mountain.

31. to be obviously superior to; surpass; outdo: As an artist, she can run rings around her brother.
32. hat (def. 8).

1. to give forth a clear resonant sound, as a bell when struck: The doorbell rang twice.
2. to make a given impression on the mind; appear: words that rang false; a story that rings true.
3. to cause a bell or bells to sound, especially as a summons: Just ring if you need anything.
4. to sound loudly; be loud or resonant; resound (often followed by out): His brave words rang out.
5. to be filled with sound; reecho with sound, as a place.
6. (of the ears) to have the sensation of a continued humming sound.
7. to telephone.

8. to cause (a bell or device with a bell) to ring; sound by striking: to ring a bell.
9. to produce (sound) by or as if by ringing: The bell rang a low tone.
10. to announce or proclaim, usher in or out, summon, signal, etc., by or as if by the sound of a bell: to ring someone's praises; The bell rang the hour.
11. to test (a coin or other metal object) by the sound it produces when struck against something.
12. to telephone.

13. a ringing sound, as of a bell or bells: the ring of sleigh bells.
14. a sound or tone likened to the ringing of a bell: Rings of laughter issued from the school.
15. any loud sound; sound continued, repeated, or reverberated: the ring of iron upon stone.
16. a set or peal of bells.
17. a telephone call: Give me a ring tomorrow.
18. an act or instance of ringing a bell: No one answered my ring.
19. a characteristic sound, as of a coin.
20. the aspect or impression presented by a statement, an action, etc., taken as revealing a specified inherent quality: a ring of assurance in her voice; the ring of truth; a false ring.

21. ring in,
• to indicate one's arrival at work by punching in on a time clock.
• to introduce artfully or fraudulently: to ring in an imposter.
22. ring off,
• to terminate a telephone conversation.
• to stop talking.
• to go away.
23. ring out,
• to indicate one's departure from work by punching out on a time clock.
• to make a sound or noise; resound: The church bells rang out.
24. ring up,
• to register (the amount of a sale) on a cash register.
• to accomplish or record: to ring up a series of successes.
• to telephone.

25. bell¹ (def. 16).
26. ring down the curtain,
• to direct that the curtain of a theater be lowered or closed.
• to lower or close the curtain in front of a stage.
27. to bring to an end: The accident rang down the curtain on his law career.
28. bell¹ (def. 17).
29. change (def. 39).
30. ring up the curtain,
• to direct that the curtain of a theater be raised or opened.
• to raise or open the curtain in front of a stage.
31. to begin; inaugurate; initiate: The $100-a-plate dinner rang up the curtain on the hospital's fund-raising drive.

1. a male given name.

1. a circular band usually of a precious metal, esp gold, often set with gems and worn upon the finger as an adornment or as a token of engagement or marriage
2. any object or mark that is circular in shape
3. a circular path or course
4. a group of people or things standing or arranged so as to form a circle
5. an enclosed space, usually circular in shape, where circus acts are performed
6. a square apron or raised platform, marked off by ropes, in which contestants box or wrestle
7. the sport of boxing
8. the field of competition or rivalry
9. to announce one's intention to be a candidate or contestant
10. a group of people usually operating illegally and covertly
11. (esp at country fairs) an enclosure, often circular, where horses, cattle, and other livestock are paraded and auctioned
12. an area reserved for betting at a racecourse
13. a circular strip of bark cut from a tree or branch, esp in order to kill it
14. a single turn in a spiral
15. the area of space lying between two concentric circles
16. a set that is subject to two binary operations, addition and multiplication, such that the set is an Abelian group under addition and is closed under multiplication, this latter operation being associative
17. botany short for annual ring
18. a closed loop of atoms in a molecule
19. any of the thin circular bands of small bodies orbiting a giant planet, esp Saturn
20. to be greatly superior to; outclass completely

21. to surround with or as if with or form a ring; encircle
22. to mark (a bird) with a ring or clip for subsequent identification
23. to fit a ring in the nose of (a bull, pig, etc) so that it can be led easily
24. Also: ringbark
• to cut away a circular strip of bark from (a tree or branch) in order to kill it
• to cut a narrow or partial ring from (the trunk of a tree) in order to check or prevent vigorous growth
25. to be the fastest shearer in a shearing shed (esp in the phrase ring the shed)

1. to emit or cause to emit a sonorous or resonant sound, characteristic of certain metals when struck
2. to cause (a bell) to emit a ringing sound by striking it once or repeatedly or (of a bell) to emit such a sound
• to cause (a large bell, esp a church bell) to emit a ringing sound by pulling on a rope that is attached to a wheel on which the bell swings back and forth, being sounded by a clapper inside it
• (of a bell) to sound by being swung in this way
4. (of a building, place, etc) to be filled with sound; echo
5. to call by means of a bell, buzzer, etc
6. to call (a person) by telephone
7. to strike or tap (a coin) in order to assess its genuineness by the sound produced
8. (of the ears) to have or give the sensation of humming or ringing
9. (of an electric circuit) to produce a damped oscillatory wave after the application of a sharp input transition
10. to change the identity of (a stolen vehicle) by using the licence plate, serial number, etc, of another, usually disused, vehicle
11. to sound familiar; remind one of something, esp indistinctly
12. ring down the curtain
• to lower the curtain at the end of a theatrical performance
• to put an end (to)
13. to give the impression of being false
14. ring the bell
• to do, say, or be the right thing
• to reach the pinnacle of success or happiness
15. to vary the manner or performance of an action that is often repeated
16. to give the impression of being true

17. the act of or a sound made by ringing
18. a sound produced by or suggestive of a bell
19. any resonant or metallic sound, esp one sustained or re-echoed
20. a telephone call
21. the complete set of bells in a tower or belfry
22. an inherent quality or characteristic
23. the damped oscillatory wave produced by a circuit that rings

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