gavel
1 of 3noun (1)
gav·el ˈga-vəl 
: rent or tribute in medieval England
gavel
2 of 3noun (2)
: a mallet used (as by a presiding officer or auctioneer) for commanding attention or confirming an action (such as a vote or sale)
gavel
3 of 3verb
gaveled or gavelled; gaveling or gavelling ˈga-v(ə-)liŋ
transitive verb
: to bring or force by use of a gavel
gaveled the audience to silence
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English, from Old English gafol; akin to Old English giefan to give
Noun (2)
origin unknown
First Known Use
Noun (1)
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Noun (2)
1835, in the meaning defined above
Verb
1925, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing gavel
Kids Definition
gavel
noun
gav·el ˈga-vəl
: a mallet with which the person in charge raps to get people's attention in a meeting or courtroom
gavels
noun
as in hammers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- hammers
- mallets
- sledgehammers
- staves
- canes
- truncheons
- batons
- nightsticks
- beetles
- bludgeons
- mauls
- maces
- cudgels
- shillelaghs
- rods
- staves
- bats
- staffs
- billies
- blackjacks
- rungs
- clubs
- birches
- knobkerries
- waddies
- billy clubs
- bastinadoes
- saps
- rattans
- hickories
- croziers
- bastinades
- switches
- shillalahs
- crooks
- crabsticks
- crosiers
- walking sticks
- whangees
