knell

American  

[nel] / nɛl /

noun

1. the sound made by a bell rung slowly, especially for a death or a funeral.

2. a sound or sign announcing the death of a person or the end, extinction, failure, etc., of something.

   the knell of parting day.

3. any mournful sound.

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verb (used without object)

1. to sound, as a bell, especially a funeral bell.

2. to give forth a mournful, ominous, or warning sound.

verb (used with object)

1. to proclaim or summon by, or as if by, a bell.

knell British  

/ nɛl /

noun

1. the sound of a bell rung to announce a death or a funeral

2. something that precipitates or indicates death or destruction

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verb

1. (intr) to ring a knell

2. (tr) to proclaim or announce by or as if by a tolling bell

knell Idioms  

1. see death knell.

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Other Word Forms

• unknelled adjective

Etymology

Origin of knell

before 950; (noun) Middle English knel, Old English cynll; (v.) Middle English knellen, knyllen, Old English cynllan; cognate with Old Norse knylla to beat, strike; akin to Dutch knal bang, knallen to bang, German Knall explosion, knallen to explode

Explanation

A knell is a ringing sound, particularly from a bell tolled to announce a death or the end of something. Which is kind of depressing. From the Old English cnyll, meaning “sound made by a bell when struck or rung slowly,” comes our modern day knell. It certainly describes the slow, ominous sound of funeral bells, but isn't always used so literally: We often say that a final blow or action that will bring an end to something sounds or signals the death knell. And if you hear a bell knell in your dreams, look out — superstition says that's not a good sign.

Example Sentences

People on the internet seem to be taking Lindy West’s memoir as millennial feminism’s final death knell.

From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026

Now, many are wondering: Is the death knell finally tolling for the Cuban Revolution?

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 16, 2026

My hunch is that many who are making this false claim about the stocks-bonds correlation are overly fixated on the 60/40 portfolio’s 2022 loss, believing that a loss that large sounded the portfolio’s death knell.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 15, 2026

Now its crash was like a death knell.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

Consequently, we do not have to wait until the publication of Geoffroy’s table in 1718 to hear the death knell of alchemy.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton