Meanings
plural passing bells · alternative passing-bell
- A bell rung to announce a passing, a death, or funeral; death bell, death knell.
What passing-bells for these who die as cattle? — Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle Can patter out their hasty orisons.
1917, Wilfred Owen, Anthem for Doomed YouthSynonyms: dead bell, death bell, death knell, lych bell, skellet bell, mort bell, soul bell, soul knell
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA bell rung to announce a passing, a death, or funeral; death bell, death knell.
Origin
Cite this entry
passing bell. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/passing%20bell
“passing bell.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/passing%20bell. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “passing bell,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/passing%20bell.
Source: passing bell on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.