joy-bells
Definition
Noun (plural noun): - Bells rung to celebrate a joyful event: "joy-bells" refers to bells that are rung, especially in a church or town, to announce or celebrate happy news such as a wedding, victory, or national festival.
Usage Examples
- (Bells were rung to celebrate the happy news.)
- (The bells were rung to mark the joyful occasion.)
Advanced Usage
- "to set the joy-bells ringing": to cause bells to be rung in celebration of good news.
- The announcement of the ceasefire set the joy-bells ringing across the country. (The news prompted widespread celebration.)
Variants and Related Words
- Joy-bell (singular noun): a single bell used for such celebrations.
- The old joy-bell was rung only on special occasions. (A single bell dedicated to joyous events.)
- Joyful (adj): feeling, expressing, or causing great happiness.
- The crowd was joyful at the sound of the joy-bells. (The crowd felt great happiness.)
Synonyms
- Peal of bells: a loud ringing of bells, especially as a celebration.
- Wedding bells: bells rung specifically for a marriage ceremony.
- Festive bells: bells rung during festivals or holidays.
Related Idioms
- "Ring out the old, ring in the new": a phrase often associated with joy-bells at New Year's Eve, meaning to celebrate the end of the old year and the start of the new.
- The joy-bells rang out the old year and rang in the new. (The bells marked the transition between years.)
- "For whom the bell tolls": a literary idiom meaning that a bell's ringing signals an important event, but not necessarily joyful; joy-bells are specifically for happiness.
- Unlike the solemn tolling of a death knell, joy-bells always announce good tidings. (Joy-bells are distinct from bells for mourning.)