Definitions of hanging:

• noun:   a form of capital punishment; victim is suspended by the neck from a gallows or gibbet until dead

  Example: "In those days the hanging of criminals was a public entertainment"

• noun:   decoration that is hung (as a tapestry) on a wall or over a window

  Example: "The cold castle walls were covered with hangings"

• noun:   the act of suspending something (hanging it from above so it moves freely)

  Example: "There was a small ceremony for the hanging of the portrait"