Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Banner \Ban"ner\, n. [OE. banere, OF. baniere, F. banni[`e]re,
   bandi[`e]re, fr. LL. baniera, banderia, fr. bandum banner,
   fr. OHG. bant band, strip of cloth; cf. bindan to bind, Goth.
   bandwa, bandwo, a sign. See {Band}, n.]
   1. A kind of flag attached to a spear or pike by a
      crosspiece, and used by a chief as his standard in battle.

            Hang out our banners on the outward walls. --Shak.

   2. A large piece of silk or other cloth, with a device or
      motto, extended on a crosspiece, and borne in a
      procession, or suspended in some conspicuous place.

   3. Any flag or standard; as, the star-spangled banner.

   {Banner fish} (Zo["o]l.), a large fish of the genus
      {Histiophorus}, of the Swordfish family, having a broad
      bannerlike dorsal fin; the sailfish. One species ({H.
      Americanus}) inhabits the North Atlantic.

Source : WordNet®

banner
     adj : unusually good; outstanding; "a banner year for the company"

banner
     n 1: long strip of cloth for decoration or advertising [syn: {streamer}]
     2: a newspaper headline that runs across the full page [syn: {streamer}]

Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

banner
     
        1. The title page added to printouts by most {print spoolers}.
        Typically includes user or account ID information in very
        large character-graphics capitals.  Also called a "burst
        page", because it indicates where to burst (tear apart)
        fanfold paper to separate one user's printout from the next.
     
        2. A similar printout generated (typically on multiple pages
        of fan-fold paper) from user-specified text, e.g. by a program
        such as {Unix}'s "banner".
     
        3. {splash screen}.
     
        [{Jargon File}]
     
        (1994-11-28)