bell
bell — noun
1. a button-operated device that sends out a short sound to call attention, usually
a button-operated device that sends out a short sound to call attention, usually at a door, desk, or beside a bed.
Mia pressed the bell beside the red gate, but nobody came.
press the bell
Please ring the bell at reception if the nurse is away.
ring the bell at + place
The patient pushed the bed bell when she needed more water.
A bell by the back door sounded during the late delivery.
- press the bell
- ring the bell
- bed bell
- bell by the door
Grammar Patterns
press the bell
ring the bell
Usage Note
Usually found in places where someone needs to call attention quickly, such as doors, reception desks, hotel rooms, or hospital beds. Distinguish from noun/2, which names the metal object itself.
Common Mistakes
2. a metal object that gives a loud clear sound when it is struck, often by a piece
a metal object that gives a loud clear sound when it is struck, often by a piece hanging inside it.
The old church bell rang across the village before sunrise.
church bell
A brass bell hung over the shop door and shook in the wind.
During the race, the coach hit a hand bell to start.
hit a hand bell
Snow covered the cracked bell in the temple yard all winter.
- church bell
- brass bell
- hand bell
- ringing bell
Grammar Patterns
a church bell
a hand bell
Usage Note
This sense can refer to the object and, in some contexts, the sound it makes. Unlike noun/1, it is not mainly a push-button electrical device.
Common Mistakes
3. a musical instrument made from a set of bells, metal balls, or metal tubes that
a musical instrument made from a set of bells, metal balls, or metal tubes that are hit to make different notes.
The drummer rolled the bells beside the drums before the concert.
bells in an orchestra
Rosa struck the bells with two light hammers during rehearsal.
strike the bells with hammers
In the school band, Ken played the bells beside the drums.
Only the bells play the final four notes after the drum roll.
- play the bells
- tuned bells
- bells in the score
- strike the bells
- tubular bells
a more specific name when the instrument uses long metal tubes
- chimes
often used for a similar tuned set of metal pieces, especially in orchestral settings
- orchestral bells
formal music term for bell-based percussion in an orchestra
Grammar Patterns
play the bells
bells in an orchestra
Usage Note
Usually used in the plural when naming the instrument. Distinguish from noun/4, which is specifically the flat-bar instrument often called a glockenspiel.
Common Mistakes
4. a musical instrument whose notes come from metal strips in different sizes, play
a musical instrument whose notes come from metal strips in different sizes, played by striking them with small beaters.
Nina played the bells with two rubber-tipped sticks at the concert.
play the bells with sticks
Our music teacher opened the case and lifted out the metal-bar bells.
Each flat metal bar on the bells gave a sharp high note.
bright clear sound
After lunch, the children learned a simple song on the bells.
- play the bells
- school bells instrument
- bells in a case
- song on the bells
- glockenspiel
the standard music term for this instrument
- orchestra bells
another common name, especially in school and band settings
- xylophone
similar in layout, but a xylophone has wooden bars, not metal ones
Grammar Patterns
play the bells
song on the bells
Usage Note
Also usually plural. Distinguish from noun/3 by structure: this instrument has flat metal bars rather than a grouped set of bells or tubes.
Common Mistakes
5. the flared opening at the far end of a trumpet or similar instrument, away from
the flared opening at the far end of a trumpet or similar instrument, away from the player's mouth.
The end of the trumpet widened into a bright silver bell.
the bell of a trumpet
Theo polished the bell of his saxophone before the show.
bell of + instrument
A small dent near the bell changed the horn's sound.
Warm air came out of the bell of the tuba.
- bell of a trumpet
- saxophone bell
- dent near the bell
- polish the bell
- mouthpiece
the end placed at the player's mouth, opposite the bell
Grammar Patterns
the bell of a trumpet
near the bell
Usage Note
Used for brass and other wind instruments with a flared opening. It usually appears in phrases like 'the bell of the trumpet' or 'near the bell'.
Common Mistakes
This means that people are becoming worried that something bad might happen.
When Maya saw the leak, alarm bells started ringing in her head.
Alarm bells are ringing for the team after three straight losses.
give somebody a bell
idiomThis means to telephone someone.
I'll give you a bell when I arrive at the station.
Did you give Sara a bell about the meeting tomorrow?
This is used to tell someone that you do not believe what they have just said.
You won the lottery? Pull the other one, it's got bells on!
He said he finished the project alone. Pull the other one!
ring a bell
idiomIf something rings a bell, it sounds familiar or reminds you of something.
That song rings a bell, but I can't remember the title.
Does the name Diego ring a bell for you?
(as) sound as a bell
idiomThis means in perfect condition, without any problems or damage.
After the check-up, the doctor said I was as sound as a bell.
The old car is still sound as a bell after twenty years.
bell — verb
1. to fasten a bell to something, especially an animal, so it rings when it moves.
to fasten a bell to something, especially an animal, so it rings when it moves.
Farmers belled the goats before they climbed into the dark hills.
bell + animal
The lead sheep was belled so the others could follow it.
passive: be belled
For the parade, the children belled the pony with blue ribbons.
The cat was belled after it kept bringing birds home.
- bell the goat
- bell the cat
- be belled
- bell a pony
- fit with a bell
plain descriptive phrase with the same basic meaning
- attach
broader verb that does not itself suggest a bell
- equip
more general and formal; can refer to adding many kinds of items
- unbell
very rare opposite meaning: remove the bell
Grammar Patterns
bell + animal
be belled
Usage Note
Most often used for animals, and often in the passive. The idea is fitting a bell, not making a ringing sound.
Common Mistakes
2. to call someone on the telephone.
to call someone on the telephone.
Bell me when you land in Osaka and find your hotel.
bell + person
Sam belled the garage as soon as the car stopped.
bell + place
If the train is late, bell your mum from the station.
I'll bell you after dinner to talk about Friday.
- bell me
- bell your mum
- bell the garage
- bell later
Grammar Patterns
bell + person
bell + place
Usage Note
Common in informal British English. When it takes an object, the object is the person or place called directly, without 'to'.
Common Mistakes
3. to spread outward near the end until it looks like a bell.
to spread outward near the end until it looks like a bell.
The glass vase belled gently at the top.
intransitive: bell at the top
Smoke belled from the chimney as the wind caught it.
At the bottom, the white skirt belled over her shoes.
bell over + edge
Near the mouth, the clay pot belled outward into a wide rim.
- bell at the top
- bell at the hem
- bell near the end
- bell over the shoes
- narrow
to become smaller or tighter instead of spreading outward
Grammar Patterns
bell at the top
bell near the end
Usage Note
This sense is intransitive. It is most often used about ends, edges, cloth, smoke, or other things that widen into a flared shape.
Common Mistakes
Word family
- doorbellnounB1
- bell-shapedadjectiveC1
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
For noun/1, 'bell' is a general word for a device that gives a short signal when someone presses it. 'Doorbell' is narrower: it is specifically the bell at the entrance of a house, flat, or office. A 'buzzer' usually makes a rough electric sound, so it fits factories, school doors, or apartment entrances better than elegant homes. A 'chime' sounds softer and more musical, and often suggests several notes rather than one sharp ring. An 'alarm' is different again because its purpose is warning, not simply calling attention. So you press the doorbell at Maria's flat, hear a buzzer at the side gate, enjoy soft chimes in a hotel lobby, but set an alarm when there is danger or when you need to wake up.
Etymology
Bell goes back to Old English 'belle', with related forms in other early Germanic languages. In its oldest English use, it named the metal object that rings when struck. From that central image, English later extended the word to electric signal devices, musical instruments, and parts or shapes that open out like a bell.