bane

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈbān 

1

: a source of harm or ruin : curse

national frontiers have been more of a bane than a boon for mankind

—D. C. Thomson

2

a

: death, destruction

… stop the way of those that seek my bane …

—Philip Sidney

b

: woe

c

: poison

d

obsolete : killer, slayer

bane

2 of 3

verb

baned; baning

transitive verb

obsolete

: to kill especially with poison

bane

3 of 3

noun (2)

chiefly Scotland

: bone

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• affliction
• curse
• nemesis
• scourge

Examples of bane in a Sentence

Noun (1)

regarding the new laborsaving machinery as a bane, the 19th-century Luddites went about destroying it in protest

a plant that is believed to be the bane of the wolf

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Invasive Burmese pythons are without question the bane of Florida’s ecosystems. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 24 Oct. 2024

Remember, whether a credit card is a boon or bane depends on your financial habits, goals, and discipline. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. —True Tamplin, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024

Industry professionals and municipal authorities acknowledge that tourism is a trade-off: often an economic boon, sometimes a social bane. —Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2024

Power Players Rather than a bane on the environment, technology companies are often positioning AI development as part of the climate solution and critical to innovation. —Reece Rogers, WIRED, 11 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, "killer, agent of death, death," going back to Old English bana "killer, agent of death," going back to Germanic *banan- (whence also Old Frisian bana, bona "killer," Old High German bano "killer, murderer," Old Norse bani "murderer, violent death"), of uncertain origin

Note: Another Germanic derivative from the same base is represented by Old English benn (feminine strong noun) "wound, sore," Old Saxon beniwunda, Old Norse ben "wound," Gothic banja "blow, wound." Attempts have been made to derive the etymon from Indo-European *g^when- "strike, kill" (see defend), but the general view is that initial *g^wh could not yield b in Germanic. See further discussion in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Band 1, pp. 460-61.

Verb

derivative of bane entry 1

Noun (2)

early Scots and northern Middle English ban, bane, going back to Old English bān — more at bone entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2d

Verb

1578, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1578, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

bane

noun

ˈbān

1

: poison entry 1 sense 1

2

: a source of harm, ruin, or unhappiness

greed is the bane of humanity

Medical Definition

bane

noun

ˈbān 

: poison see henbane