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caulk

 - 3 dictionary results

caulk

[kawk]
–verb (used with object)
1. to fill or close seams or crevices of (a tank, window, etc.) in order to make watertight, airtight, etc.
2. to make (a vessel) watertight by filling the seams between the planks with oakum or other material driven snug.
3. to fill or close (a seam, joint, etc.), as in a boat.
4. to drive the edges of (plating) together to prevent leakage.
–noun
5. Also, caulk⋅ing [kaw-king] . a material or substance used for caulking.
Also, calk.


Origin:
1350–1400; < L calcāre to trample, tread on (v. deriv. of calx heel), conflated with ME cauken < OF cauquer to trample < L, as above
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To caulk
caulk also calk   (kôk)   
v.   caulked also calked, caulk·ing also calk·ing, caulks also calks

v.   tr.
  1. To make watertight or airtight by filling or sealing: caulk a pipe joint; caulked the cracks between the boards with mud.

  2. Nautical To make (a boat) watertight by packing seams with a waterproof material, such as oakum or pitch.

v.   intr.
To apply caulking: caulked all around the window frame.
n.  Caulking.

[Middle English cauken, to press, from Old North French cauquer, from Latin calcāre, to tread, from calx, heel.]
caulk'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

caulk 
c.1378, from O.N.Fr. cauquer, from L.L. calicare "to stop up chinks with lime," from L. calx "lime, limestone." Original sense is nautical, of making ships watertight.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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