quell

1 of 2

verb

ˈkwel 

quelled; quelling; quells

transitive verb

1

: to thoroughly overwhelm and reduce to submission or passivity

quell a riot

2

: quiet, pacify

quell fears

queller noun

quell

2 of 2

noun

1

obsolete : slaughter

2

archaic : the power of quelling

Synonyms

Verb

• subdue
• suppress
• repress
• quash
• crush

Examples of quell in a Sentence

Verb

the National Guard was called in to help quell the late-night disturbances downtown

the principal held up her hand to quell the students so they could hear the urgent announcement

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

But the National Guard's presence does not only symbolically quell protest. —Colleen Hamilton, Them., 30 Oct. 2025

Trump has deployed the national guard to cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland and Memphis to quell protests against stricter immigration enforcement. —Bart Jansen, USA Today, 28 Oct. 2025

First, hotter temperatures seem to quell the virus, and the weather is getting cooler. —Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 24 Oct. 2025

The attorney for Illinois countered that the situation on the ground, specifically at Broadview, had been quelled by state police after restrictions on protest hours were instituted. —Connor Greene, Time, 23 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, to kill, quell, from Old English cwellan to kill; akin to Old High German quellen to torture, kill, quāla torment, Lithuanian gelti to hurt

Noun

Middle English, from quellen to kill

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for quell

• bel
• belle
• cel
• cell
• dell
• dwell
• el
• ell
• fel
• fell
• gel
• gell

Kids Definition

quell

verb

ˈkwel

1

: to put down by force

quell a riot

2

: quiet entry 3

quell fears

queller noun