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 of quell

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

So playing Blackjack at home quells some of their desire to do something catastrophic. — Marah Eakin, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026

State and local officials and several of Wells’ white friends who had become the target of that speculation had hoped that the grand jury report would quell critics. — Sophie Bates, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026

The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate Wednesday for the first time since 2023 in an effort to quell stubbornly-high inflation and the central bank also signaled that another rate hike could occur later this year. — Democrat-Gazette Stafffrom Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 17 Sep. 2026

After just one win in four league games (their other victory came against Champions League minnows Sabah), there needed to be a performance here to quell the pressure starting to build. — Chris McKenna, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026

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

14th 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