: 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
Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2025
She was relegated to the cheap seats because her vote was needed to keep Johnson wedded to the gavel.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 27 Mar. 2025
Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 18 Apr. 2025
In 2021, Georgia’s Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan stripped Beach of his transportation committee chairmanship, but Beach reclaimed that gavel in early 2023.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gavel
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Noun
The auction listing doesn’t list a price, but expect this car to fetch a sky-high gavel price.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2025
She was relegated to the cheap seats because her vote was needed to keep Johnson wedded to the gavel.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
After her speech, the audience erupted in a roaring applause, and the board president began slamming her gavel down to try and temper the growing applause, but the cheers only got louder after that.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 18 Apr. 2025
In 2021, Georgia’s Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan stripped Beach of his transportation committee chairmanship, but Beach reclaimed that gavel in early 2023.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gavel
Cite this Entry
“Gavel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gavel. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
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