clack

verb \ ˈklak \

Updated on: 17 Apr 2018

Definition of clack

intransitive verb

1 : chatter, prattle

2 : to make an abrupt striking sound or series of sounds

3 of fowl : cackle, cluck

transitive verb

1 : to cause to make a clatter

2 : to produce with a chattering sound; specifically : blab

—

clacker

noun

See clack defined for English-language learners

See clack defined for kids

Examples of clack in a Sentence

I heard her heels clacking down the hall.
He clacked his teeth together.

Recent Examples of clack from the Web

News flowed slowly before the internet age; teletype machines clacked out stories at 66 words per minute.

— jay reeves, Fox News, "AP was there: Journalists recall covering MLK assassination," 5 Apr. 2018
News flowed slowly before the internet age; teletype machines clacked out stories at 66 words per minute.

— Washington Post, "AP was there: Journalists recall covering MLK assassination," 4 Apr. 2018
Her four-inch stilettos clacked evenly on the ground.

— jessica knoll, Glamour, "The Governor’s Daughter Has a Big Problem," 20 Mar. 2018
Another 40 seconds later, the Tracker still missing, the Disco nosed over the last crest, pushrod clacking furiously, and ripped down the final dune for the win with a 7:34.

— Car and Driver, "The Battle of the Off-Road Beaters: Ford F-150 Custom vs. Geo Tracker, Jeep Cherokee, Land Rover Discovery," 30 Nov. 2016
The sport with the frenzied sweeping and clacking rocks has rules that literally require players to treat opponents with kindness.

— kristen gelineau, chicagotribune.com, "Humble, kind and fair: Can curling cure our troubled world?," 16 Feb. 2018
Scored to the sounds of heels clacking against marble, the runway presentation spoofed The Devil Wears Prada view of fashion.

— sarah spellings, The Cut, "Alexander Wang Is the Funniest Person at Fashion Week," 12 Feb. 2018
Living > Parties Paris couture week might be midway through, but last night at the Travellers Club on the Champs-Elysées, haute heels were still clacking gleefully.

— Vogue, "Matches Fashion and Fabrizio Viti Bring Italian Glamour to Couture," 24 Jan. 2018
As the drama heats up, the typewriters furiously clack — and the political becomes increasingly personal, and the personal turns political — Katharine finds both a new purpose and identity.

— manohla dargis, New York Times, "Review: In ‘The Post,’ Democracy Survives the Darkness," 21 Dec. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'clack.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of clack

Middle English, of imitative origin

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

clack Synonyms

Synonyms

clatter, rattle;

Related Words

chink, chirp, clank, click, clink;

clang, clash, crash;

spatter, sputter;

racket;

clack

noun

Definition of clack

1 a : rapid continuous talk : chatter

b : tongue

2 archaic : an object (such as a valve) that produces clapping or rattling noises usually in regular rapid sequence

3 : a sound of clacking

the clack of a typewriter

Recent Examples of clack from the Web

The only other sounds are from the sticks (some loud percussive clacks) or breathing.

— alastair macaulay, New York Times, "Review: In ‘Latitude,’ Dance in Silence Makes Its Own Inner Music," 11 Feb. 2018
Manville is steely and proper, and watching her clack through the house in her tasteful black heels is a kind of medicinal pleasure.

— stephanie zacharek, Time, "Phantom Thread Works Hard at Being a Masterpiece. But Is It?," 21 Dec. 2017
Shaheed and DJ Supreme Hometown: Birmingham The sound: Ionized-particle flow over vintage-collage tracks and contemporary click-clacks.

— matt wake | mwake@al.com, AL.com, "25 essential Alabama musicians to know for 2018," 19 Dec. 2017
Harbaugh’s arrival at press conferences is preceded by the click-clack of his omnipresent football cleats across Michigan’s football facility flooring.

— edgar thompson, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh bucks college football convention to rebuild Wolverines," 29 Aug. 2017
A high heel will induce a shift-in-gravity stance and alluring hip sway, referred to as torque, whereas the kitten heel seems to merely come with a shuffle motion and a clack.

— liana satenstein, Vogue, "Kitten Heels Are Back—Are They Too Much, Or Not Enough?," 9 Aug. 2017
His move to a bigger location off Monroe Road in southeast Charlotte was the strenuous, clickety-clack ascent up the hill.

— cristina bolling, charlotteobserver, "New Charlotte boutique has 2 special stories: How the owner made it to uptown is just 1 of them," 26 July 2017
Cherry is the brand name to know in this world, offering switches of varying design to provide different feelings—stiffer sprints for firmer pushback, and, of course, keys designed to clack.

— eric limer, Popular Mechanics, "The Best Keyboard Ever Is Back," 5 July 2017
My heels click-clack on the marble floors as a pleasant but pale aide-de-camp ushers me into the living room, where Rybolovlev's young lawyer, Tetiana Bersheda, tall and thin, with diamonds around her neck and wrist, soon comes to fetch me.

— vicky ward, Town & Country, "Did This Billionaire Get Swindled Out of Millions in an Elaborate Art World Scheme?," 17 Nov. 2015

First Known Use of clack

15th century

CLACK Defined for English Language Learners

clack

verb

Definition of clack for English Language Learners

: to make or cause something to make a short sharp sound or series of short sharp sounds

CLACK Defined for Kids

clack

verb \ ˈklak \

Definition of clack for Students

clacked; clacking

1 : to talk rapidly and without stopping

2 : to make or cause to make a short sharp sound

… suddenly he began to shiver … I could hear his teeth clacking.
—Theodore Taylor, The Cay

clack

noun

Definition of clack for Students

1 : rapid continuous talk

The disc jockey's clack went on all morning.

2 : a sound of clacking

the clack of a typewriter

Learn More about clack

See words that rhyme with clack Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for clack Spanish Central: Translation of clack Nglish: Translation of clack for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of clack for Arabic speakers

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clack

Definition of clack

clacker

Examples of clack in a Sentence

Recent Examples of clack from the Web

Origin and Etymology of clack

clack Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

clack

Definition of clack

Recent Examples of clack from the Web

First Known Use of clack

CLACK Defined for English Language Learners

clack

Definition of clack for English Language Learners

CLACK Defined for Kids

clack

Definition of clack for Students

clack

Definition of clack for Students

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