knell 1 of 2

Definition of knellnext
as in to ring
to make the clear sound heard when metal vibrates the church bells knelled to mark the death of the nation's beloved leader

Synonyms & Similar Words

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knell

2 of 2

noun

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of knell
Noun
Comparisons with first in class are often the death knell for new kids on the block. Kamal Ahmed, Fortune, 3 July 2026 Shares of the software companies were up after Guggenheim upgraded both to buy, believing that artificial intelligence won't be a death knell for the companies and attractive valuations in the stocks. Davis Giangiulio, CNBC, 1 July 2026 But the death knell for Casad’s crops was Oregon’s century-old law, which protects some water users at the expense of others. Emily Cureton Cook, ProPublica, 26 June 2026 Even in the Upper South, a higher-than-usual temperature and drought combo can be a death knell for gardens. Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 16 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for knell
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knell
Verb
  • At Target in Lowell on Sunday, registers were ringing as shoppers like Brenda Sieng could not wait to find the perfect back-to-school dress for her 10-year-old daughter Iliana who is heading into the fifth grade.
    Paul Burton, CBS News, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Akon was also letting the hits ring out throughout the evening.
    Rashad Alexander August 8, Kansas City Star, 8 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • Assuming the role of a human clapper, Holzinger struck its lip again and again, sending a sonorous peal across the Biennale grounds.
    Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 24 June 2026
  • In Parliament Square, the music was drowned out by the peals of Westminster Abbey.
    Sam Knight, New Yorker, 14 May 2026
Noun
  • Accessibility Offering dedicated rooms for those with limited mobility, elevator access to all floors, and specialized light indicators on room numbers and in-room telephones, the property prides itself on being accessibility-friendly.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The key indicator is that Newmont Mining, the largest constituent of the gold miners, has broken through the 150-day moving average.
    Michael Khouw, CNBC, 10 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • The video’s moodiness subtly underscores the fact that the lion’s share of these tracks are built on one muffled breakbeat, which tolls like clockwork across the LP.
    Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 23 July 2026
  • George’s arrival was celebrated with gun salutes, and bells at Westminster Abbey—where William and Kate had married over two years prior on April 29, 2011—tolled continuously for three hours in celebration of the future king’s arrival.
    Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 22 July 2026
Noun
  • If, however, Madrid find themselves in end-to-end ding-dongs next season — the kind that Guardiola spent his career, and particularly his final season at City, trying to avoid — then Bernardo may not be the man for the occasion.
    Sam Lee, New York Times, 23 June 2026
  • Hopefully, now this kid can stop being a moody ass little ding-dong about it.
    Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 8 May 2026
Noun
  • Brent crude futures ended last week down more than 7% following signals from Washington that an agreement with Tehran to unblock the vital maritime chokepoint was in sight.
    Jenni Reid, CNBC, 11 Aug. 2026
  • That’s a key signal that the humanoid robot market is at least starting to mature from novelty – and dance shows – toward utility.
    John Koetsier, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Soon after the post went up, Grado said, her Venmo started chiming.
    Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 4 Aug. 2026
  • When ships passed through the channel, residents would wave towels and sheets out their windows, Franciscans chiming the hilltop monastery’s bells as a friendly welcome.
    Lane Nieset, Travel + Leisure, 31 July 2026
Noun
  • Cloudy chords, meditative tintinnabulation, the whoosh of wind and rain, blocks of iridescent brass — all these discrete sonorities trundled by, like a train of boxcars with panoramas painted on their sides.
    Justin Davidson, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2025
  • Shivaree, chthonian, erumpent, tintinnabulation, exonumia, requiescat, deipnosophist, omphaloskepsis, horripilation, deliquesce, apopemptic.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2021

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Cite this Entry

“Knell.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knell. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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