Noun

Singular gang

Plural gangs

gang (plural gangs)

1. A going; a course.
2. A number going in company; hence, a company, or a number of persons associated for a particular purpose; a group of laborers under one foreman; a squad; as, a gang of sailors; a chain gang; a gang of thieves.
3. A combination of similar implements arranged so as, by acting together, to save time or labor; a set; as, a gang of saws, or of plows.
4. A set; all required for an outfit; as, a new gang of stays.
5. The mineral substance which incloses a vein; a matrix; a gangue.
6. (Electrical components) The number of switches wired into one face plate.
7. (electrical components) A group of wires attached as a collection; a gang of wires.

   Do a drop for the telephone gang, then another drop for the internet gang, both through the ceiling of the wiring closet.

A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen. In the United Kingdom the word is still often used in this sense, but it later underwent pejoration. The word gang often carries a negative connotation; however, within a gang which defines itself in opposition to mainstream norms, members may adopt the phrase as a statement of identity or defiance. Reports of gang-related homicides are concentrated mostly in the largest cities in the United States, where there are long-standing and persistent gang problems and a greater number of documented gang members—most of whom are identified by law enforcement.

The term gangster (or mobster) refers to a criminal who is a member of a crime organization, such as a gang. The terms are widely used in reference to members of gangs associated with American prohibition and the American offshoot of the Mafia, such as the Chicago Outfit or the Five Families. The related word "mobster" is a term derived from Latin and Aramaic. The word mobi means large gathering in Aramaic, and similarly, mob in Latin means crowd.

Gang is from the past participle of Old English gan "to go". It is cognate with Old Norse gangr "a group of men", and it is in this sense that the word is used today, rather than the older meaning.