knell

\ ˈnel

How to pronounce knell (audio)

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Definition of knell

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

knell

knelled; knelling; knells

Definition of knell (Entry 2 of 2)

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

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about knell

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Examples of knell in a Sentence

Verb the church bells knelled to mark the death of the nation's beloved leader

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Power plants are transitioning to natural gas, and that will be the death knell for electric power from coal, and any coal mines. — J.j. Anselmi, The New Republic, "The Rise and Fall of a Fracking Boom Town: An Oral History," 21 Dec. 2020 Decision paralysis is a death knell in any business. — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, "Horse racing newsletter: Los Alamitos is back in the daytime," 4 Dec. 2020 This final death knell for Arecibo’s telescope, which tracked asteroids approaching Earth and searched the heavens for habitable planets, followed other serious damages to the massive observatory and weeks of discussion about its future. — Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, "Massive Arecibo Telescope Collapses in Puerto Rico," 3 Dec. 2020 That now famous move 37 of game two was the death knell of human preeminence in strategy games. — Will Roper, Wired, "There's No Turning Back on AI in the Military," 24 Oct. 2020 Scientists and historians will likely debate the circumstances of Arecibo’s death knell for years to come. — Leonard David, Scientific American, "Arecibo Observatory to Close Its Giant Eye on the Sky," 20 Nov. 2020 Conservatives have a litany of other objections — that the lockdown is a death knell for the economy, an infringement of civil liberties and proof that the government lacks a coherent strategy for getting past the pandemic. — Mark Landler, New York Times, "U.K.’s Johnson Faces a Growing Revolt Over His Coronavirus Policy," 2 Nov. 2020 But there’s little else voters approve of, and Democratic strategists believe that knocking Trump on the economy could be his campaign’s death knell. — Nicole Goodkind, Fortune, "Everything we just learned about how Joe Biden would run the economy," 9 July 2020 Texas Republicans don’t see changing demographics as the death knell of their party. — Washington Post, "Why Texas’s overwhelmingly Latino Rio Grande Valley turned toward Trump," 10 Nov. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Day 18: Hard to focus with all the death knells tolling. — Daniel Pollack-pelzner, The New Yorker, "What Shakespeare Actually Did During the Plague," 1 Apr. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'knell.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

7 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Knell.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/knell. Accessed 24 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for knell

knell

noun

English Language Learners Definition of knell

literary : a sound of a bell when it is rung slowly because someone has died

See the full definition for knell in the English Language Learners Dictionary

knell

\ ˈnel

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Kids Definition of knell

1 : a stroke or sound of a bell especially when rung slowly for a death, funeral, or disaster

2 : an indication of the end or failure of something “… it sounds the death knell of our society.”— Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

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