quell

1 of 2

verb

ˈkwel 

quelled; quelling; quells

transitive verb

1

: to thoroughly overwhelm and reduce to submission or passivity

quell a riot

2

: quiet, pacify

quell fears

queller noun

quell

2 of 2

noun

1

obsolete : slaughter

2

archaic : the power of quelling

Synonyms

Verb

• clamp down (on)
• crack down (on)
• crush
• put down
• quash
• repress
• silence
• slap down
• snuff (out)
• squash
• squelch
• subdue
• suppress

Examples of quell in a Sentence

Verb

the National Guard was called in to help quell the late-night disturbances downtown

the principal held up her hand to quell the students so they could hear the urgent announcement

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Killorn had quelled the Rangers momentum with a short-handed equalizer less than two minutes before New York reassumed control. —Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 29 Mar. 2025

Here and there, far from Meemaw’s grave, a few small trees attempted, unsuccessfully, to quell the rage of a Texas sun. —Robert Moor, Outside Online, 26 Mar. 2025

And the Trump Administration hasn’t done much to quell fears. —Nerdwallet, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Mar. 2025

Over 9,000 staff members and 105 helicopters were deployed to quell the fires engulfing areas mostly in the southeast of the country, damaging residential buildings and a temple, the authorities said. —Reuters, NBC news, 24 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, to kill, quell, from Old English cwellan to kill; akin to Old High German quellen to torture, kill, quāla torment, Lithuanian gelti to hurt

Noun

Middle English, from quellen to kill

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for quell

• bel
• belle
• cel
• cell
• dell
• dwell
• el
• ell
• fel
• fell
• gel
• gell

Kids Definition

quell

verb

ˈkwel

1

: to put down by force

quell a riot

2

: quiet entry 3

quell fears

queller noun