: a mallet used (as by a presiding officer or auctioneer) for commanding attention or confirming an action (such as a vote or sale)
gaveled or gavelled; gaveling or gavelling
ˈga-v(ə-)liŋ 
: to bring or force by use of a gavel
gaveled the audience to silence
Examples of gavel in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Zach Everson, Forbes, 10 Sep. 2024
The abrupt swing of a gavel commenced the auction, leaving some startled.
—Hannah Malach, WWD, 10 Sep. 2024
As a result, the first woman Speaker of the House – Nancy Pelosi – took the gavel for a second time in January 2019.
—Kelly Dittmar, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2024
That was the combined margin in the five closest House races, which determined who held the speaker’s gavel.
—Heather Weston, New York Daily News, 10 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gavel 
Noun
When the gavel came down, BDT & MSD owned the hotel for $100 million.
—Zach Everson, Forbes, 10 Sep. 2024
The abrupt swing of a gavel commenced the auction, leaving some startled.
—Hannah Malach, WWD, 10 Sep. 2024
As a result, the first woman Speaker of the House – Nancy Pelosi – took the gavel for a second time in January 2019.
—Kelly Dittmar, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2024
That was the combined margin in the five closest House races, which determined who held the speaker’s gavel.
—Heather Weston, New York Daily News, 10 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gavel
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gavel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Gavel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gavel. Accessed 2 Oct. 2024.
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