Adjacent Words

Knell definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

KNELL, n. nell. Properly, the stroke of a bell; hence,the sound caused by striking a bell; appropriately and perhaps exclusively, the sound of a bell rung at a funeral; a tolling.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the sound of a bell rung slowly to announce a death or a funeral or the end of something v
1: ring as in announcing death
2: make (bells) ring, often for the purposes of musical edification; "Ring the bells"; "My uncle rings every Sunday at the local church" [syn: ring, knell]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from Old English cnyllan; akin to Middle High German erknellen to toll Date: before 12th century transitive verb to summon or announce by or as if by a knell intransitive verb 1. to ring especially for a death, funeral, or disaster ; toll 2. to sound in an ominous manner or with an ominous effect II. noun Date: before 12th century 1. a stroke or sound of a bell especially when rung slowly (as for a death, funeral, or disaster) 2. an indication of the end or the failure of something <sounded the death knell for our hopes>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 the sound of a bell, esp. when rung solemnly for a death or funeral. 2 an announcement, event, etc., regarded as a solemn warning of disaster. --v. 1 intr. a (of a bell) ring solemnly, esp. for a death or funeral. b make a doleful or ominous sound. 2 tr. proclaim by or as by a knell (knelled the death of all their hopes). Phrases and idioms: ring the knell of announce or herald the end of. Etymology: OE cnyll, cnyllan: perh. infl. by bell

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Knell Knell, n. [OE. knel, cnul, AS. cnyll, fr. cnyllan to sound a bell; cf. D. & G. knallen to clap, crack, G. & Sw. knall a clap, crack, loud sound, Dan. knalde to clap, crack. Cf. Knoll, n. & v.] The stoke of a bell tolled at a funeral or at the death of a person; a death signal; a passing bell; hence, figuratively, a warning of, or a sound indicating, the passing away of anything. The dead man's knell Is there scarce asked for who. --Shak. The curfew tolls the knell of parting day. --Gray.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Knell Knell, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Knelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Knelling.] [OE. knellen, knillen, As. cnyllan. See Knell, n.] To sound as a knell; especially, to toll at a death or funeral; hence, to sound as a warning or evil omen. Not worth a blessing nor a bell to knell for thee. --Beau. & Fl. Yet all that poets sing, and grief hath known, Of hopes laid waste, knells in that word, ``alone''. --Ld. Lytton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Knell Knell, v. t. To summon, as by a knell. Each matin bell, the baron saith, Knells us back to a world of death. --Coleridge.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. Death-bell, passing-bell, signal of doom or death. II. v. n. Knoll, sound warningly, sound with doom.

Moby Thesaurus

annihilation, bane, bell, bemoan, bewail, biological death, bong, cessation of life, change ringing, chime, chiming, chink, clang, clanging, clangor, clank, clanking, clinical death, clink, coronach, crossing the bar, curtains, dead march, death, death bell, death knell, death song, debt of nature, decease, demise, departure, deplore, ding, ding-a-ling, dingdong, dinging, dingle, dirge, dissolution, dong, donging, doom, dying, ebb of life, elegize, elegy, end, end of life, ending, epicedium, eternal rest, eulogy, exit, expiration, extinction, extinguishment, final summons, finger of death, funeral march, funeral oration, funeral ring, funeral song, give sorrow words, going, going off, gong, grave, graveside oration, grieve, hand of death, jangle, jaws of death, jingle, jingle-jangle, jinglejangle, jingling, keen, knelling, lament, last debt, last muster, last rest, last roundup, last sleep, leaving life, loss of life, making an end, moan, monody, mourn, passing, passing away, passing bell, passing over, peal, peal ringing, pealing, perishing, quietus, release, repine, requiem, rest, reward, ring, ring changes, ringing, sentence of death, shades of death, shadow of death, sigh, sing the blues, sleep, somatic death, sorrow, sound, sound a knell, summons of death, threnode, threnody, ting, ting-a-ling, tingle, tingling, tink, tinkle, tinkling, tinnitus, tintinnabulate, toll, tolling, weep over