1
a
: a lump or mass especially of earth or clay
b
: soil, earth
2
: oaf, dolt
cloddish adjective
cloddishness noun
cloddy adjective

Examples of clod in a Sentence

Her husband's such a clod. despite his imposing size, he's no simple clod
Recent Examples on the Web This constable is a total clod, but the nursing home manager is extremely stupid for calling the police. Rachel Pannett, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023 When something the robot has driven over (e.g. rock, dirt clod) touches the underside of the robot, that object supports some of the robot’s weight. IEEE Spectrum, 6 July 2017 The real standouts are the thick, bone-in pork chops, which have a beautiful pink smoke ring along the bone end, and the lean shoulder clod, an old Texas cut with long beefy strands beneath a thick, smoky bark. Robert F. Moss, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2023 The rest of Burks' team took turns with the federal agents, hauling full buckets up the stairs then pressing clods of dirt through steel-mesh screens. Rowan Moore Gerety, WIRED, 13 July 2023 If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less. Lee Sung Jin, Los Angeles Times, 14 June 2023 By early afternoon, nothing remained on the blank, featureless edge of the cemetery but a fresh pile of crumbling dirt clods, a small bouquet, and four holes where the metal tent poles had gone into the ground. Ted Genoways, The New Republic, 25 May 2023 When the ads fail to translate into an ongoing acting career, Henry gives up on life and goes back to work at Party Down with Ron, an overbearing clod in the vein of Gervais’ David Brent. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 13 Feb. 2023 Ask for shoulder clod, prime rib, sausage ... but not a fork—Smitty's upholds meat-market tradition. Robin Soslow, Chron, 14 Jan. 2023

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

Word History

Etymology

Middle English clodde, from Old English clod- (in clodhamer fieldfare)

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of clod was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near clod

Cite this Entry

“Clod.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clod. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

clod

noun
1
: a lump or mass especially of earth or clay
2
: a person who is dull or not sensitive : oaf
cloddish adjective
cloddy adjective

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