dinner-bell

The dinner-bell rings to call everyone to the table.

Definition

Noun: A bell that is rung to signal that a meal, typically dinner, is ready to be served or that it is time to eat.

Usage Examples

• (A bell used to announce the start of dinner.)
• (A bell signaling the time for the evening meal.)

Advanced Usage

• "to sound the dinner-bell": to ring the bell to announce dinner.

  • The cook sounded the dinner-bell as soon as the roast was ready. (The cook rang the bell to inform everyone that dinner was served.)

• Figurative use: "dinner-bell" can be used metaphorically to describe anything that signals the start of a meal or a break.

  • The smell of freshly baked bread was like a dinner-bell to the hungry workers. (The aroma acted as a strong signal for them to seek food.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dinner (n): the main meal of the day, often eaten in the evening.

  • We have dinner together as a family every Sunday. (The evening meal.)

• Bell (n): a hollow metal object that makes a ringing sound when struck.

  • The church bell rings every hour. (A device that produces a ringing sound.)

• Dinner-gong (n): a gong used instead of a bell to signal dinner (less common variant).

  • The butler struck the dinner-gong to announce the meal. (A gong used for the same purpose as a dinner-bell.)

Synonyms

• Meal bell: a bell rung to announce any meal, not specifically dinner.
• Supper bell: a bell rung to signal the evening meal (often used interchangeably with "dinner-bell" in some regions).

Related Idioms

• "Ring the dinner-bell": to announce the start of dinner.

  • Grandma always rings the dinner-bell when the food is on the table. (She signals the meal with a bell.)

• "As regular as a dinner-bell": something that occurs at a predictable, fixed time.

  • His hunger pangs were as regular as a dinner-bell, appearing every evening at six. (The hunger occurred with the same reliability as the bell.)