What does "gavel" mean?
Rent.
Gavel
/ˈɡæ.vəl/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Rent.
- Grammar: gavel is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: adjourn, award item, baton, begin.
- Useful contrasts: adjourn, begin, chaos.
- Usage evidence: The judge banged his gavel again.
How to use "gavel"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "gavel" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "gavel" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "gavel" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "gavel" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "gavel" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "adjourn" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "gavel", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Rent. countable, historical, uncountable
- 2 A wooden mallet, used by a courtroom judge, or by a committee chairman, struck against a sounding block to quieten those present, or by an auctioneer to accept the highest bid at auction.
"More than three decades later, Ms. Pelosi is all but assured on Thursday of reclaiming her former title as speaker of the House, the first lawmaker in more than half a century to hold the office twice. With the gavel in hand, she will cement her status as the highest-ranking and most powerful elected woman in American political history."
- 3 A small heap of grain, not tied up into a bundle.
"The combination with a mechanical rake of the roof or screen herein described, or the equivalent thereof, to intervene and keep the gavel of grain collected on the platform separated during its discharge"
- 4 A gable. Scotland, archaic
- 5 a small mallet used by a presiding officer or a judge wordnet
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Usury; interest on money. countable, obsolete, uncountable
- 7 The beginning or end of legal proceedings. US, metonymically
- 8 An old Saxon and Welsh form of tenure by which an estate passed, on the holder's death, to all the sons equally; also called gavelkind. countable, historical, uncountable
- 9 The legal system as a whole. US, metonymically
- 10 A mason's setting maul.
Verb
- 1 To divide or distribute according to the gavel system. transitive
- 2 To use a gavel.
- 3 To begin or end legal proceedings
"The judge gavelled for order in the courtroom after the defendant burst out with a confession."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The judge banged his gavel again."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "gavel"?
Common synonyms include: adjourn, award item, baton, begin, bench mallet, call to order.
How do you use "gavel" in a sentence?
The judge banged his gavel again.
How do you pronounce "gavel"?
Pronounced /ˈɡæ.vəl/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English gavel, from Old English gafol, from Proto-West Germanic *gabul, from Proto-Germanic *gabulą, from Proto-Germanic *gebaną (“to give”), equivalent to give + -el.
Etymology 2
Origin obscure. Possibly an alteration of dialectal cavel, a variant of kevel (“a stone mason's axe with a flat face, a cleat or bollard”), from Middle English kevel (“a mason's hammer”), from Old Norse kefli (“a piece of wood, stick, cylinder, mangle”). Cognate with Norwegian kjevle (“rolling pin”).
Etymology 3
From Old French gavelle (cf. Modern French javelle) probably diminutive from Latin capulus (“handle”), from capere (“to lay hold of, seize”); or compare Welsh gafael (“hold, grasp”). Compare heave.