black gang

noun

A group of workers who fed the furnaces of a coal-powered steamship or other vessel.

OriginChinese 黑幫 /黑帮 →
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Meanings

black gang1

nounblack gang (plural black gangs)

plural black gangs

  1. nauticalA group of workers who fed the furnaces of a coal-powered steamship or other vessel.
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see black, gang. (i.e. one with racially black members)

black gang2

nounblack gang (plural black gangs)

plural black gangs

  1. derogatoryhistoricalgovernmentA propaganda term used by Mao Zedong against his opponents.

Origin

black gang · noun

From black + gang.

Full word history & related roots →

black gang · noun

  1. Chinese黑幫 /黑帮“gangsters, gang”
  2. Englishblack gang

Borrowed from Chinese 黑幫 /黑帮 (hēibāng, “gangsters, gang”). The first character, 黑, translates as "black" on its own.

More words from Chinese

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

black gang. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20gang

MLA

“black gang.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20gang. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “black gang,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20gang.

Source: black gang on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.