Main Entry:: ¹bell
Pronunciation:: \ˈbel\
Function:: noun
Etymology:: Middle English belle, from Old English; perhaps akin to Old English bellan to roar — more at bellow
Date:: before 12th century

1 a: a hollow metallic device that gives off a reverberating sound when struck b: doorbell2 a: the sounding of a bell as a signal b: a stroke of a bell (as on shipboard) to indicate the time ; also : the time so indicated c: a half hour period of a watch on shipboard indicated by the strokes of a bell — see ship's bells table below3: something having the form of a bell: as a: the corolla of a flower b: a bell-shaped organ or part (as the umbrella of a jellyfish or the dewlap of a moose) c: the part of the capital of a column between the abacus and neck molding d: the flared end of a wind instrument 4 a: a percussion instrument consisting of metal bars or tubes that when struck give out tones resembling bells —usually used in plural b: glockenspiel

[bell table]

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