death knell

American  

noun

1. a harbinger of the end, death, or destruction of something.

2. passing bell.

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death knell British  

noun

1. something that heralds death or destruction

2. a bell rung to announce a death

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death knell Idioms  

1. Something that indicates impending failure, as in His low scores sounded the death knell for his ambitions. The noun knell, used for the ringing of a bell since at least a.d. 1000, is rarely heard today except in this figurative phrase.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

death knell

If “Superman” had opened to critical and commercial failure, it would have been a death knell for the modern superhero genre as we know it.

From Salon ● Jun. 27, 2026

Mr. Trump spoke on Monday with Mr. Sharaa, and on Tuesday Mr. Barrack sounded a death knell for the SDF.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 21, 2026

It marks the death knell of the post–World War II settlement that, however imperfect, wrestled the anarchy of war into a framework designed to condition armed aggression on legal justification.

From Slate ● Jan. 5, 2026

“In California, that’s not a death knell, that’s a life force.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 8, 2025

They had rung the bells when King Robert died, she remembered, but this was different, no slow dolorous death knell but a joyful thunder.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin