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ring a bell

 - 6 dictionary results
Bell
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bell

1  [bel]
Use ring a bell in a Sentence
–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.
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.
–verb (used with object)
10. to cause to swell or expand like a bell (often fol. 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).
—Idioms
14. bell the cat. cat 1 (def. 15).
15. ring a bell, to evoke a memory, esp. 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:
bef. 1000; ME, OE belle; c. D bel; deriv. of bell 2

Related forms:
bell-less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Bell
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ring 2   (rĭng)   
v.   rang (rāng), rung (rŭng), ring·ing, rings

v.   intr.

  1. To give forth a clear resonant sound.

  2. To cause something to ring.

  3. To sound a bell in order to summon someone: I'll ring for the maid.

  4. To have a sound or character suggestive of a particular quality: a story that rings true.

  5. To be filled with sound; resound: The room rang with the children's laughter.

  6. To hear a persistent humming or buzzing: My ears were ringing from the sound of the blast.

  7. To be filled with talk or rumor: The whole town rang with the bad news.

v.   tr.

  1. To cause (a bell, for example) to ring.

  2. To produce (a sound) by or as if by ringing.

  3. To announce, proclaim, or signal by or as if by ringing: a clock that rings the hour.

  4. Chiefly British To call (someone) on the telephone. Often used with up: She rang me at noon. Let's ring her up and invite her.

  5. To test (a coin, for example) for quality by the sound it produces when struck against something.

n.  

  1. The sound created by a bell or another sonorous vibrating object.

  2. A loud sound, especially one that is repeated or continued.

  3. A telephone call: Give me a ring when you have time.

  4. A suggestion of a particular quality: His offer has a suspicious ring.

  5. A set of bells.

  6. The act or an instance of sounding a bell.

Phrasal Verb(s):
ring up

  1. To record, especially by means of a cash register: ring up a sale.

  2. To accomplish or achieve; win: rang up several consecutive victories.


Idiom(s):
ring a bell Informal To arouse an often indistinct memory.

Idiom(s):
ring down the curtainTo end a performance, event, or action.

Idiom(s):
ring (someone's) chimes/bells Slang To knock (an opponent) out by physical or other force.

Idiom(s):
ring up the curtainTo begin a performance, event, or action.

[Middle English ringen, from Old English hringan.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Financial Dictionary

bell

The device that sounds to mark the open and close of each trading day on an organized securities exchange.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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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.
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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.
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Idioms & Phrases

ring a bell

Arouse an indistinct memory, remind one of something, as in That name rings a bellI think I've met him. The bell here summons up a memory. [1930s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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