clewed

[kloo] Origin

clew

[kloo]
noun
1.
clue (def. 1).
2.
Nautical. either lower corner of a square sail or the after lower corner of a fore-and-aft sail.
3.
a ball or skein of thread, yarn, etc.
4.
Usually, clews. the rigging for a hammock.
5.
Theater. a metal device holding scenery lines controlled by one weighted line.
EXPAND
6.
Classical Mythology. the thread by which Theseus found his way out of the labyrinth.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
7.
to coil into a ball.
8.
clue (def. 3).
9.
Theater.
a.
to draw up the bottom edge of (a curtain, drop, etc.) and fold out of view; bag.
b.
to secure (lines) with a clew.

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Clewed is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
10.
clew down, Nautical. to secure (a sail) in an unfurled position.
11.
clew up, Nautical. to haul (the lower corners of a square-rig sail) up to the yard by means of the clew lines.
12.
spread a large clew, Nautical.
a.
to carry a large amount of sail.
b.
to present an impressive appearance.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English clewe, Old English cleowen, cliewen, equivalent to cliew- (cognate with Old High German kliu ball) + -en -en5; akin to Dutch kluwen
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To clewed
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

clew
"ball of thread or yarn," northern Eng. and Scot. relic of O.E. cleowen, probably from W.Gmc. *kleuwin, from P.Gmc. *kliwjo-, from I.E. *gleu- "gather into a mass, conglomerate" (related to clay).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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