ding
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause to make a ringing sound.
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to speak about insistently.
verb (used without object)
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to make a ringing sound.
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to talk insistently.
noun
verb
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to ring or cause to ring, esp with tedious repetition
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(tr) another word for din 1
noun
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an imitation or representation of the sound of a bell
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informal a party or social event
verb
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to strike; dash down
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to surpass
Etymology
Origin of ding1
First recorded in 1575–85; see origin at ding-dong
Origin of ding2
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb dingen, dengen, dengen “to beat, scourge,” probably from Old English gedingan “to throw oneself with force”; akin to Old English dencgan “to knock, ding,” Old Norse dengja “to beat, hammer”
Explanation
A ding is the sound that a bell makes — a kind of metallic, musical ringing. When you hear the ding of the doorbell, you'll know that the pizza delivery guy is here. Bells, telephones, and doorbells all make a ding, and the word is a verb as well: "I'm going to run when I hear the dinner bell ding — I want to be first in line." Another kind of ding is a small dent or nick in a surface, the kind you might get in your car's bumper during a minor fender bender. Ding falls in the category of imitative words, which sound like their meaning.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Watch him describe a crew shooting down Iranian missiles: “It’s so incredible, these guys, these geniuses. … Ding, ding, ding, ding. Missile launch, then psshm, poom!”
From Slate • Jun. 11, 2026
This is ostensibly a courtesy to avoid alerting current co-workers that you are job hunting, but it means people you rub the wrong way could ding you years later.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
The other risk—one that has already caused the market to ding CoreWeave stock —concerns financing.
From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026
It may be hard not to feel like a lower credit limit or a temporary ding to your score is a reflection on you, but it’s really not.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 3, 2026
When the familiar ding didn’t happen, he remembered there was no electricity.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
