12 Words To Describe The Sound Of A Bell (Onomatopoeia)

The sound of a bell can be described in many ways. Sometimes, we should use words to describe these sounds rather than trying to relate the exact noise to the reader. This article will present some of the best bell onomatopoeia words out there!

Which Words Can Describe The Sound Of A Bell?

There are plenty of useful options for us when trying to describe the sound of a bell. You should check out the following:

• Ding dong
• Bing bong
• Ring
• Bell
• Bong
• Chime
• Ding
• Jingle
• Ping
• Ting-a-ling
• Tinkle
• Toll

The preferred version is “ding dong.” It works well to recreate the two noises that are most commonly associated with a bell toll. The first is a higher-pitched noise (the “ding”), and the second is a lower sound that echoes throughout the area (the “dong”).

Ding Dong

“Ding dong” is a great way to describe the sound of a bell. It works well because it shows that two distinct sounds come from a bell. One is much higher in tone, while the other is much lower. Together, the sounds create the signature “bell toll.”

Here are a few examples to help you with it:

• Ding dong! My mother rang the bell, which indicated it was time for us to eat dinner.
• Ding dong! Ding dong! I knew I was late, but I couldn’t be sure until I heard that bell ring!
• Ding dong! Can you answer the door, please?

Bing Bong

“Bing bong” is almost identical to “ding dong.” We simply replace the “D’s” with “B’s” to change the meaning slightly. “B” words often have a lower register than “D” words, so this phrase works best for larger bells that make booming noises.

These examples should help you to make sense of it:

• Bing bong! Bing bong! It was time for us to go to the wedding. I was so nervous.
• Bing bong! The bell kept ringing. It was as if it was expecting us to answer its summons.
• Bing bong! I could hear the clock tower bell from a mile away!

Ring

“Ring” works well when you want to show that someone has rung a bell. It’s a good choice for onomatopoeia because it shows that “ringing” is taking place. This is often a group of repeated sounds that comes from a vibrating bell.

These examples should help you make more sense of it:

• I kept hearing the bells ring! It was almost too much for me to bear.
• They wouldn’t stop ringing the bells! Even after I told them it was over, they kept going.
• I could hear someone ringing the bell, but I couldn’t see anyone who might have been responsible.

Bell

“Bell” is a simple way to use the name of the instrument as a way to make the sound. It’s a good choice for onomatopoeia because it comes with very little confusion. Everyone knows that “bell” is a sound that a “bell” can make, after all.

Here are a few ways to use it:

• The bell from the clocktower was causing a racket!
• I didn’t like hearing the bell sound. I needed to get away from it quickly.
• I kept hearing a faint bell! However, I don’t know where it came from.

Bong

“Bong” is a low, echoing noise that removes the initial “bing” from the section we mentioned previously. This time, we are referring to a large bell that chimes at a certain time (usually inside a clock). You can think of the Big Ben clock as making a “bong” noise.

Here are a few ways you might make this one work:

• Bong! The clocktower echoed out across the city. It was time for the mass to begin!
• Bong! Bong! I kept hearing the bells near the city, but I was miles away from it!
• I don’t know why I decided to bong the bell, but it made me laugh when I did so!

Chime

“Chime” is a slightly more specific noise that a bell makes. It’s most common for clocks to chime when they reach a specific time (the bell in them will chime out to remind the owner of the time). It’s a low, humming sound that rings out for a while.

Here is how we could make “chime” work:

• The grandfather clock in my attic kept chiming, although I hadn’t heard the bell work in years!
• I knew that at six chimes, it was time for me to start thinking about making the children their dinner.
• I heard some chimes and knew that it was time for me to go. I didn’t want to, but I knew I had to.

Ding

“Ding” is a good way of using “ding dong” without a loud echo. Some bells are simply not large enough to create a low, echoing sound. Therefore, they might only make a soft “ding” when they are rung. That’s where this sound comes into play.

Check out these examples if you want to see how you could use it:

• Ding! The bells went off again. I should probably go and check on the livestock.
• I kept hearing a faint ding, but I was certain that I had uninstalled the bells the night before.
• I heard the bell ding, so I went to investigate as soon as I got the chance!

Jingle

“Jingle” is a good choice when we want to refer to the sound a smaller bell might make. Often, a “jingle” is a combination of small chimes that can come out of a bell. However, none of these chimes are low in register, and they’re easy to miss because they are quiet.

You might be familiar with the Christmas rhyme “Jingle Bells.” This takes the onomatopoeia word of “jingle” and shows how closely they relate to the sound that bells make (especially the smaller bells you might associate with Christmas).

Here are some ways we can make it work:

• I kept hearing the bells jingling in the wind. However, I did not think anything of it at the time.
• The bells kept jingling! It was like somebody was sitting near them and ringing them, but I couldn’t see another soul around.
• Jingle! Jingle! It’s the bells again! I can hear them coming over the hills!

Ping

“Ping” is a great way to show that a bell has a more gentle or abrupt sound to it. It works when it’s a smaller bell that only has one high-pitched noise (which is why we don’t use the “dong” idea with this one).

These examples will help you to understand how it works:

• The bell went ping, but I couldn’t tell whether anyone had entered the store.
• I heard the ping, but I have absolutely no idea where the bell is! I don’t even know how someone managed to ring it.
• It went ping again! Maybe you can go and check it out before you leave?

Ting-A-Ling

“Ting-a-ling” is another great choice if you want to talk about a more gentle and repetitive sound. It works well when smaller bells have rung and often indicates that the bell has made more than one noise while it is recovering.

Unlike larger bells, there isn’t much need for a smaller bell to have a “dong” noise. They do not create low, echoing tones, which is why the “dong” is unnecessary. Instead, the secondary sound is closer to a “ling,” which still has a high-pitched tone to it.

These examples should help you to understand more about it:

• Ting-a-ling! He rang the bell and waited for someone to serve him, but the hotel foyer seemed deserted.
• We need to find the bell! I want to hear it ting-a-ling again! I haven’t heard one like that in years.
• Oh, would you stop ringing that ting-a-ling! I can’t stand the noise coming out of it!

Tinkle

“Tinkle” is another gentle sound that a bell could make. Again, this is reserved more for the smaller bells that you might come across in clocks or above store doors. We use the “tinkle” sound to show that a bell has rung for a small amount of time.

Check out these examples if you want to see how it works:

• Tinkle! I heard the door go, but I wasn’t quite ready to go and present myself to the customers!
• I heard the tinkle, which meant that somebody had opened the door. However, I thought it would be safer if I stayed inside.
• He made the bell tinkle when nobody was looking. I found it to be quite amusing!

Toll

“Toll” works well to show that a bell has made a large, booming sound. The “toll” is a good way to describe it because it shows that it is lower in pitch (the use of the “O” vowel) demonstrates this.

Here are a few examples to help you make more sense of it:

• The bell tolled at the hour mark, and we could hear it ringing throughout the cathedral.
• I couldn’t stop the bell from tolling on the hour! It was actually quite frightening because I forgot it was so loud.
• The bell tolled! It was ringing throughout the land, and it was enough to attract the attention of many of the locals.

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