1
: an old or badly working piece of machinery
especially
: a dilapidated automobile
2
: someone or something notably unsuccessful
told a joke that was a real clunker
Examples of clunker in a Sentence
My first car was an old clunker that kept breaking down.
That joke was a real clunker.
The director's recent films have all been clunkers.
Recent Examples on the Web
And while James’ ramp-up after his injury return included a clunker in Orlando and a buzzer-beater in Chicago, the team quickly found its footing in good wins against Houston and in Memphis and Oklahoma City.
—
Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Reigns, in particular, shines throughout and his clunkers against Undertaker or Brock Lesnar seem long in the rearview.
—Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
The rest of the starting staff has a 7.23 ERA after Stroman’s clunker.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 12 Apr. 2025
Several of them have been, to put it politely, clunkers.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunker
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Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Reigns, in particular, shines throughout and his clunkers against Undertaker or Brock Lesnar seem long in the rearview.
—Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
The rest of the starting staff has a 7.23 ERA after Stroman’s clunker.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 12 Apr. 2025
Several of them have been, to put it politely, clunkers.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunker
Cite this Entry
“Clunker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clunker. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
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