knell

noun \ ˈnel \

|Updated on: 17 Jun 2018

Examples: knell in a Sentence

Definition of knell

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

See knell defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of knell from the Web

Each paper is based on preclinical research, and scientists said the findings were hardly a death knell for the nascent field of CRISPR.

— damian garde, STAT, "CRISPR scientists are in for the long haul. Wall Street is less patient," 11 June 2018
That could drive fossil fuel prices down even further, which would be a death knell for higher-cost producers, particularly oil producers in Canada and the United States.

— megan geuss, Ars Technica, "Researchers predict economic downturn if fossil fuel investment goes unchecked," 5 June 2018
Minnesota Wild Last week: 9 (-1) Record: 45-26-11 Playoff seed: C3 (vs. WPG) Losing defenseman Ryan Suter might be a death knell.

— jeremy fuchs, SI.com, "Playoff Power Rankings: Let the Madness Commence," 9 Apr. 2018
Like many of his long-running hits, producer Cameron Mackintosh realized that the show was, nevertheless, becoming a bit musty, particularly after the 2004 movie adaptation was released, often the death knell to a stage production.

— theodore p. mahne, NOLA.com, "'Phantom of the Opera' revisits Saenger with fresh new production that maintains the magic," 19 Mar. 2018
Auburn blew a 20-point lead on the road at LSU, but the death knell came on a fourth-quarter punt return touchdown by LSU's DJ Chark.

— tom green, AL.com, "Grading Auburn's special teams for the 2017 season," 12 Jan. 2018
Six years ago, the all-SEC title game between Alabama and LSU was the death knell for the Bowl Championship Series.

— paul myerberg, USA TODAY, "Alabama meets Georgia in College Football Playoff final: Mirror images, striking differences," 3 Jan. 2018
The e-book, once seen as the death knell of the traditional book, is looking more like a complement to it, now — useful on business trips, but not entirely satisfying on a sunny Sunday morning, curled up on the couch.

— david scharfenberg, BostonGlobe.com, "Paper checks forever?," 21 Apr. 2018
It was widely seen as a death knell for the governor's political career.

— chris cillizza, CNN, "How the heck is Eric Greitens still the governor of Missouri?," 17 Apr. 2018

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.