How to Use gavel in a Sentence

gavel

1 of 2 noun
  • That will change if Democrats get the gavels.
    — Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2025
  • Bonus points are awarded for a white curly wig and a gavel.
    — Ella Cerón, Parents, 16 Sep. 2025
  • That’s bound to cause headaches for the guy holding the gavel.
    — Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2023
  • Not for who held the gavel, but for who broke faith with the public.
    — Wanda James, Denver Post, 13 Jan. 2026
  • Stay tuned to see what other classics will go under the gavel.
    — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 28 June 2023
  • Men and women with gavels and long, black robes will continue seeing to that.
    — Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2026
  • Brunson then banged her gavel and said the meeting was adjourned.
    — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 23 Aug. 2025
  • The chamber will enter next month with a new person holding the gavel.
    — Alex Thomas, Arkansas Online, 29 Oct. 2023
  • The outcome was certain before the gavel came down to open the meeting.
    — Jeffrey Collins, Quartz, 6 Feb. 2024
  • One of the King’s royally swish gifts will go under the gavel this spring.
    — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 19 Mar. 2024
  • Why isn't that enough to have already gotten a speaker in place, holding the gavel?
    — Nbc Universal, NBC News, 22 Oct. 2023
  • There’s still nearly a month left until the final gavel, and plenty could shift.
    — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 10 Mar. 2026
  • So for now, redistricting watch has turned into gavel watch.
    — Hayleigh Colombo, IndyStar, 31 Oct. 2025
  • And McCarthy needs to keep them all happy in order to keep the gavel.
    — Tori Otten, The New Republic, 14 July 2023
  • Speaker Mike Johnson can afford to lose just one vote to keep hold of his gavel.
    — Philip Elliott, Time, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Democrats see Jefferies as a speaker in waiting, just five seats away from taking the gavel.
    — ABC News, 17 Sep. 2023
  • The final gavel will come down for the highest bidders on March 27.
    — Kaycee Sloan, Cincinnati Enquirer, 17 Mar. 2026
  • Before the gavel drops, here’s a look back at what was — by any measure — a busy year at City Hall.
    — Data Reporter, Austin American Statesman, 21 Jan. 2026
  • Louijeune won’t hand over the gavel to the new president either.
    — Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald, 30 Dec. 2025
  • Less than two weeks have passed since his caucus unanimously voted to hand him the speaker’s gavel.
    — Erin B. Logan, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2023
  • The board president rapped his gavel and issued a stern warning to a room filled with rainbow flags, parents and teens.
    — Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 6 Dec. 2023
  • Two more of his former grails will go under the gavel at Phillips New York this summer.
    — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 12 May 2026
  • Don’t be surprised if its gavel price is beaten in the next four to five years, though, especially with how things have gone over the last decade.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 5 Dec. 2023
  • With tour groups of kids laughing, heels clacking, gavels slamming as leaders bring lawmakers to order.
    — Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, Des Moines Register, 8 Jan. 2026
  • The House has held six rounds of voting for speaker over two days and still no nominee has received enough votes to win the gavel.
    — WSJ, 5 Jan. 2023
  • The banging of the gavel did little to quiet Macek or the other attendees.
    — Nicole Carr, ProPublica, 29 June 2023
  • And so the Brown grads drank, the clank clank of the gavel echoing over the din of chatter and 2000s pop punk.
    — Hau Chu, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2023
  • McCarthy has long held the dream of wielding the gavel, but his chase has become an undisputed nightmare.
    — Philip Elliott, Time, 5 Jan. 2023
  • The list of House Republicans who have tried and failed to win the speaker’s gavel keeps growing.
    — Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2023
  • Plenty of the delegates there will remember that green gavel moment from Paris.
    — John D. Sutter, CNN Money, 9 Nov. 2025

gavel

2 of 2 verb
  • So, maybe a woman or person of color won’t be wielding the House gavel at this point next week.
    — Philip Elliott, TIME, 5 Oct. 2023
  • Perhaps the winds will shift for Fox News when the judge gavels in the trial on Monday.
    — Oliver Darcy, CNN, 14 Apr. 2023
  • Gore had to gavel several Democrats’ objections out of order.
    — Tim Darnell, ajc, 4 Jan. 2021
  • Lawmakers are required to gavel into a special session by the governor but are not required to act.
    — Matt Velazquez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 30 Aug. 2020
  • Hart was in the House gallery watching as Pelosi claimed the speakers’ gavel for a second time in 2019.
    — Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2023
  • It was left to Gore, who presided over the count as president of the Senate, to gavel down the objections from his fellow Democrats.
    — Arkansas Online, 9 Dec. 2020
  • Ledbetter loudly struck his gavel several times after Bracy began talking about the bill.
    — Mike Cason | [email protected], al, 12 May 2023
  • Tuesday's emotional hearing was covered gavel to gavel on many major TV networks.
    — Brian Slodysko, ajc, 28 July 2021
  • Libby and director Tyne Rafaeli certainly do not miss an opportunity to bang that gavel.
    — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 29 Jan. 2026
  • Their efforts failed as several House Democrats quietly returned to Austin and allowed the House to gavel in with a quorum present.
    — Dallas News, 28 July 2022
  • The Senate is expected to gavel out on Friday for summer recess but tempers are running hot as lawmakers speed toward the finish.
    — Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 30 July 2025
  • Legislators return to work Monday to gavel in their two-year session and swear in new members, meeting under the cloud of a worsening coronavirus pandemic.
    — Dustin Gardiner, SFChronicle.com, 6 Dec. 2020
  • Legislators' goal is to get the bill approved and sent to Beshear by the end of the month, so any vetoes from the governor can be overridden when lawmakers gavel back in briefly in mid-April.
    — Lucas Aulbach, Louisville Courier Journal, 18 Mar. 2026
  • The Texas Legislature doesn’t gavel in for its next legislative session in Austin until 2027.
    — Eleanor Dearman updated January 23, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Jan. 2026
  • Lawmakers typically then gavel out and reconvene in January.
    — Kayla Dwyer, IndyStar, 3 Nov. 2025
  • Legislators will gavel back in next January for a lengthier 60-day session, with Kentucky's next two-year budget the top priority.
    — Lucas Aulbach, Louisville Courier Journal, 18 Apr. 2025
  • The Indiana House is expected to gavel in Monday afternoon for the start of its 2026 legislative session.
    — Caroline Vakil, The Hill, 1 Dec. 2025
  • Due to retirements and bids for higher office, there will be new leaders in several key positions in the Iowa House and Senate when lawmakers gavel in for the start of the legislative session.
    — Brianne Pfannenstiel, Des Moines Register, 8 Jan. 2026
  • The House of Representatives will gavel into at a special session Wednesday to vote on the Democratic governor’s request.
    — Daniela Altimari, courant.com, 12 July 2021
  • McCarthy made several concessions to members of his party in his campaign for the speaker's gavel earlier this year, including allowing a single member to introduce a motion to vacate.
    — Lauren Peller, ABC News, 6 June 2023
  • With a little less than a month to go before the Quail Auction, which will be held on August 18, there are expectations that the race car could fetch as much as $40 million when the final gavel strikes.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 24 July 2023
  • If negotiators finalize a deal, those legislators will return to the Capitol, approve the deal and gavel out until a second special session in August, legislative leaders said.
    — James Brooks, Anchorage Daily News, 21 May 2021
  • When Maryland lawmakers gavel in for a special legislative session beginning Monday, a partisan battle over redrawing the state’s congressional maps will be front and center.
    — Bryn Stole, baltimoresun.com, 3 Dec. 2021
  • Because of retirements and bids for higher office, there will be new legislators in several key positions in the Iowa House and Senate when lawmakers gavel in for the start of the legislative session.
    — Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register, 12 Jan. 2026
  • Because of retirements and bids for higher office, there will be new legislators in several key positions in the Iowa House and Senate when lawmakers gavel in for the start of the legislative session.
    — Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register, 8 Jan. 2026
  • Texas Republicans, however, were already expected to gavel out their first session on Friday because special sessions only last 30 days maximum.
    — Caroline Vakil, The Hill, 15 Aug. 2025
  • According to the Tennessean, Sexton called on Jones to speak within minutes of his reclaiming his seat and was ultimately pushed to gavel supporters into order twice during Jones’ remarks.
    — Marc Ramirez, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2023
  • The House will gavel out Thursday, and the Senate left town last week, though leadership in both chambers has directed lawmakers to be prepared to return to Washington immediately if a deal is struck.
    — Rachel Scott, ABC News, 25 May 2023
  • House Republicans, however, are instead focusing on their own legislative priorities and using their new committee gavels to launch investigations into the administration.
    — Staff Writer follow, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2023
  • McCaul has sought various pieces of information and intelligence regarding the Biden administration's withdrawal from Afghanistan since gaining the committee gavel in January.
    — Mike Brest, Washington Examiner, 2 May 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gavel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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