Phrasal verb
bang on about
Definition
phrasal verb. to talk about something for a long time in a way that is boring or annoying for others.
phrasal verb. to speak at length and repetitively about a specific topic, typically causing irritation to the listener; carries a strong informal and pejorative register.
Examples
“He is always banging on about his new car.”
“I wish she would stop banging on about her holiday photos because we have work to finish.”
“The politician continued to bang on about tax reform long after the audience had lost interest in the technical details of the proposal.”
Examples
simple
“He is always banging on about his new car.”
contextual
“I wish she would stop banging on about her holiday photos because we have work to finish.”
complex
“The politician continued to bang on about tax reform long after the audience had lost interest in the technical details of the proposal.”
Usage
highly informal; usually followed by the preposition 'about' and a noun or gerund.
Teaching tip
this is a more colorful, British-inflected alternative to 'keep talking about'; use it to teach students how to express mild social frustration.
Pitfall
He bangs on his job all day.
He bangs on about his job all day.
the preposition 'about' is necessary to connect the action to the topic being discussed.
Phrasal verb
Particles
on about
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
bang + on + about + object