quell

[kwel]

verb (used with object)

1. to suppress; put an end to; extinguish.

   The troops quelled the rebellion quickly.

   Synonyms: quench, conquer, defeat, overcome, overpower, quash, crush
   Antonyms: foster

2. to vanquish; subdue.

   Synonyms: quench, conquer, defeat, overcome, overpower, quash, crush
   Antonyms: foster

3. to quiet or allay (emotions, anxieties, etc.).

   The child's mother quelled his fears of the thunder.

   Synonyms: hush, compose, pacify, calm
   Antonyms: agitate

quell

/ kwɛl /

verb

1. to suppress or beat down (rebellion, disorder, etc); subdue

2. to overcome or allay

   to quell pain

   to quell grief

Other Word Forms

• quellable adjective
• queller noun
• unquellable adjective
• unquelled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of quell¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English quellen, Old English cwellan “to kill”; akin to Old Norse kvelja “to torment,” German quälen “to vex”; kill ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of quell¹

Old English cwellan to kill; related to Old Saxon quellian, Old High German quellen, Old Norse kvelja to torment

Example Sentences

Rajoelina sacked his energy minister and then his government - but this did little to quell the calls for him to step down.

Read more on BBC

But that has failed to quell the furore.

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A plunging currency could reignite the runaway inflation that Milei has managed to quell.

Read more on Barron's

As we witnessed with former Vice President Kamala Harris’ failed presidential campaign, celebrity politics will not slow down Trumpism, nor will it quell the rising authoritarian tide.

Read more on Salon

Democratic-ruled California filed suit after the Republican president sent troops to Los Angeles earlier this year to quell demonstrations sparked by a federal crackdown on undocumented migrants.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• annihilate 
• conquer 
• crush 
• extinguish 
• overcome 
• put down 
• quench 
• silence 
• stamp out 
• stifle 
• subdue