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Definition of "peal" [peal]

  • A ringing of a set of bells, especially a change or set of changes rung on bells. (noun)
  • A set of bells tuned to each other; a chime. (noun)
  • A loud burst of noise: peals of laughter. (noun)
  • To sound in a peal; ring. (verb-intransitive)
  • To sound loudly and sonorously. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "peal" in a sentence
  • "The church bells will once again peal, now with especially joyous fervor."
  • "A few seconds afterwards, a deafening watery sound came up with awful peal from the spot where they had disappeared."
  • "Come, there goes another peal, that is to order the porter to go and inform the municipality that the dead-doctor is to come here and view a corpse."