Join free

gavel

English

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

gavel¹

  • /ˈɡa.vəl/ UK
  • /ˈɡæ.vəl/ US

Where it comes from

From Middle English gavel, from Old English gafol, from Proto-West Germanic *gabul, from Proto-Germanic *gebaną (“to give”), equivalent to give + -el.

noun gavels

  1. countable, historical, uncountable Rent.
  2. countable, obsolete, uncountable Usury; interest on money.
  3. countable, historical, uncountable An old Saxon and Welsh form of tenure by which an estate passed, on the holder's death, to all the sons equally; also called gavelkind.

verb gavels · gaveling · gavelling · gaveled · gavelled

  1. transitive To divide or distribute according to the gavel system.

gavel²

  • /ˈɡa.vəl/ UK
  • /ˈɡæ.vəl/ US

Where it comes from

Origin obscure. Possibly an alteration of dialectal cavel, a variant of kevel (“a stone mason's axe with a flat face, a cleat or bollard”), from Middle English kevel (“a mason's hammer”), from Old Norse kefli (“a piece of wood, stick, cylinder, mangle”). Cognate with Norwegian kjevle (“rolling pin”).

noun gavels

  1. A wooden mallet, used by a courtroom judge, or by a committee chairman, struck against a sounding block to quieten those present, or by an auctioneer to accept the highest bid at auction. More than three decades later, Ms. Pelosi is all but assured on Thursday of reclaiming her former title as speaker of the House, the first lawmaker in more than half a century to hold the office twice. With the gavel in hand, she will cement her status as the highest-ranking and most powerful electe
  2. US, metonymically The beginning or end of legal proceedings.
  3. US, metonymically The legal system as a whole.
  4. A mason's setting maul.

verb gavels · gaveling · gavelling · gaveled · gavelled

  1. To use a gavel.
  2. To begin or end legal proceedings The judge gavelled for order in the courtroom after the defendant burst out with a confession.

gavel³

  • /ˈɡa.vəl/ UK
  • /ˈɡæ.vəl/ US

Where it comes from

From Old French gavelle (cf. Modern French javelle) probably diminutive from Latin capulus (“handle”), from capere (“to lay hold of, seize”); or compare Welsh gafael (“hold, grasp”). Compare heave.

noun gavels

  1. A small heap of grain, not tied up into a bundle. The combination with a mechanical rake of the roof or screen herein described, or the equivalent thereof, to intervene and keep the gavel of grain collected on the platform separated during its discharge

gavel⁴

  • /ˈɡa.vəl/ UK
  • /ˈɡæ.vəl/ US

noun gavels

  1. Scotland, archaic A gable.

Translations

Every language

noun wooden mallet

Españolmazo, martillo
日本語小槌 kozuchi
Françaismarteau
DeutschHammer, Richterhammer, Auktionshammer
Italianomazzuolo
Românăciocănel n ciocan
Русскийдеревя́нный молоток m) molotok

verb to use a gavel

Españoldar mazazos, dar martillazos
Românăciocăni, lovi cu ciocanul

Talk about this word

Cite this
MLA

"gavel." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/gavel. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

gavel. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/gavel

Chicago

"gavel." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/gavel.

BibTeX
@misc{gavel_2026,
  title = {gavel},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/gavel},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}