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Definition of banshee noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

banshee

noun
 
/ˈbænʃiː/,
 
/bænˈʃiː/
 
/ˈbænʃiː/,
 
/bænˈʃiː/
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  1. (in Irish stories) a female spirit who makes a long sad noise as a warning to people that somebody in their family is going to die soon
    Oxford Collocations DictionaryBanshee is used before these nouns:
    • wail
    See full entry
    Word Originlate 17th cent.: from Irish bean sídhe, from Old Irish ben síde ‘woman of the fairies’.
See banshee in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: banshee

Nearby words

halfway
adverb
 
 
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