Synonyms

bells

[belz] Origin

bells

[belz]
noun (used with a plural verb)
Informal. bell-bottom (def. 2).

Origin:
1965–70; by shortening of the full phrase, as in shorts from short pants

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Bells is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
Dictionary.com Unabridged

bell

1[bel]
noun
1.
a hollow instrument of cast metal, typically cup-shaped with a flaring mouth, suspended from the vertex and rung by the strokes of a clapper, hammer, or the like.
2.
the stroke or sound of such an instrument: We rose at the bell.
3.
anything in the form of a bell.
4.
the large end of a funnel, or the end of a pipe, tube, or any musical wind instrument, when its edge is turned out and enlarged.
5.
Architecture. the underlying part of a foliated capital.
EXPAND
6.
Nautical.
a.
any of the half-hour units of nautical time rung on the bell of a ship.
b.
each individual ring of the bell, counted with others to reckon the time: It is now four bells.
c.
a signal on the telegraph of a large power vessel, made between the navigating officers and the engineer.
7.
Zoology. umbrella (def. 2).
8.
Botany. the bell-shaped corolla of a flower.
9.
Metallurgy. a conical lid that seals the top of a blast furnace and lowers to admit a charge.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
10.
to cause to swell or expand like a bell (often followed by out): Belling out the tubes will permit a freer passage of air.
11.
to put a bell on.
verb (used without object)
12.
to take or have the form of a bell.
13.
Botany. to produce bells; be in bell (said of hops when the seed vessels are forming).
14.
bell the cat. cat1 (def. 15).
15.
ring a bell, to evoke a memory, especially a vague or partial recollection; remind one of something: His name rings a bell but I can't remember him.
16.
ring the bell, to provide what is desired; be satisfactory or successful: This new book rings the bell with teenagers.
17.
saved by the bell,
a.
(of a boxer) saved from a knockout by the ringing of a gong signaling the end of a round.
b.
(of any person) spared from anticipated trouble by some extraneous event.
18.
with bells on, Informal. eagerly; ready to enjoy oneself: Just say when, and we'll be there with bells on.

Origin:
before 1000; Middle English, Old English belle; cognate with Dutch bel; derivative of bell2

bell-less, adjective

bell

2[bel]
verb (used without object), verb (used with object)
1.
to bellow like a stag in rutting time.
2.
to bay, as a hunting dog.
noun
3.
the cry of a rutting stag or hunting dog.

Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English bellen, Old English bellan to roar; cognate with Old High German bellan (German bellen to bark), Middle Dutch bellen, belen, Old Norse belja; akin to Lithuanian bal̃sas voice, Sanskrit bhaṣ- bark, bhāṣ- speak. See bellow, belch

Bell

[bel]
noun
1.
Ac·ton [ak-tuhn] , pen name of Anne Brontë.
2.
Alexander Graham, 1847–1922, U.S. scientist, born in Scotland: inventor of the telephone.
3.
(Arthur) Clive (Howard), 1881–1964, English critic of literature and art.
4.
Cur·rer [kur-er] , pen name of Charlotte Brontë.
5.
Ellis, pen name of Emily Brontë.
EXPAND
6.
James Thomas (“Cool Papa”), 1903–91, U.S. baseball player, a Negro Leagues outfielder noted for his speed.
7.
John, 1797–1869, U.S. political leader: Speaker of the House 1834–35.
8.
a city in SW California, near Los Angeles. 25,450.
COLLAPSE
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To bells
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

bell
O.E. belle, common North Sea Gmc. (cf. M.Du. belle, M.L.G. belle) but not found elsewhere in Gmc. (except as a borrowing), from PIE base *bhel- "to sound, roar." Statistical bell curve was coined 1870s in French. Bell, book, and candle is a reference to a form of excommunication. To ring a bell "awaken
EXPAND
a memory," 1934, is perhaps a reference to Pavlovian experiments.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

Bell (běl), Sir Charles. 1774-1842.

British anatomist and surgeon who published detailed anatomies of the nervous system and the brain. He was the first to distinguish between sensory and motor nerves. Bell's Law and Bell's palsy are named for him.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
Bell   (běl)  Pronunciation Key 
Scottish-born American scientist and inventor whose lifelong interest in the education of deaf people led him to conceive the idea of transmitting speech by electric waves. In 1876 his experiments with a telegraph resulted in his invention of the telephone. He later produced the first successful sound recorder, an early hearing aid, and many other devices.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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