knell

• n. 丧钟声；凶兆；哀伤的声音
• vi. 鸣丧钟；预报凶兆；发出哀伤之声
• vt. 敲丧钟召集

来自古英语cnyll,缓慢而沉重的钟声，拟声词。引申词义丧钟声。拼写可能受bell影响。

knell (n.)

Old English cnyll "sound made by a bell when struck or rung slowly," perhaps of imitative origin. The Welsh cnull "death-bell" appears to be a borrowing from English. For vowel evolution, see bury.

knell (v.)

Old English cnyllan "to toll a bell; strike, knock," cognate with Middle High German erknellen "to resound," Old Norse knylla "to beat, thrash;" probably imitative. Related: Knelled; knelling.

1. The tax increase sounded the death knell for the business.

税赋的增加为这个企业敲响了丧钟。

来自柯林斯例句

2. It's going to be the death knell of the red deer.

这将导致马鹿的灭绝。

来自柯林斯例句

3. The arrival of large supermarkets sounded the death knell of many small local shops.

大型超市的出现宣告了许多地方小商店的终结.

来自《简明英汉词典》

4. That is the death knell of the British Empire.

这是不列颠帝国的丧钟.

来自辞典例句

5. At first he thought it was a death knell.

起初,他以为是死亡的丧钟敲响了.

来自辞典例句