clack

clack (klæk)

—vb
1.	to make or cause to make a sound like that of two pieces of wood hitting each other
2.	(intr) to jabber
3.	a less common word for cluck

—n
4.	a short sharp sound
5.	a person or thing that produces this sound
6.	chatter
7.	Also called: clack valve a simple nonreturn valve using either a hinged flap or a ball

[C13: probably from Old Norse klaka to twitter, of imitative origin]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Word Origin & History

clack

mid-13c., from O.N. klaka "to chatter," of echoic origin.

Example sentences

Around the bazaar, near the old fort that dominates the city, there was the

clack of a shutter being drawn up.

Antlers clack, brown noses stick up out of the scrum.

She moved her chair until it struck mine with a dry, wooden clack.

Another opens on to the hum of fans and the clack of keyboards from workrooms

and offices.

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Related Words

butterfly valve clack valve clackers

clackers clickety-clack

Matching Quote

"Like figures on an ancient clock,
Warrior, or saint, or clown
(All's one to the machine) that wake
When each stale hour is done,
And with preliminary whirr
Play their allotted role,
Stiffly advance, engage, retire
Trembling a little still,
So blandly nodding Death and I
Nearer and nearer march,
At the click of night and the click of day,
— Click-clack! We approach, we approach!"

-C.D. Andrews