clew

[ kloo ]

noun
  1. Nautical. either lower corner of a square sail or the after lower corner of a fore-and-aft sail.

  1. a ball or skein of thread, yarn, etc.

  2. Usually clews. the rigging for a hammock.

  3. Theater. a metal device holding scenery lines controlled by one weighted line.

  4. Classical Mythology. the thread by which Theseus found his way out of the labyrinth.

verb (used with object)
  1. to coil into a ball.

  1. Theater.

    • to draw up the bottom edge of (a curtain, drop, etc.) and fold out of view; bag.

    • to secure (lines) with a clew.

Verb Phrases
  1. clew down, Nautical. to secure (a sail) in an unfurled position.

  2. clew up, Nautical. to haul (the lower corners of a square-rig sail) up to the yard by means of the clew lines.

Idioms about clew

  1. spread a large clew, Nautical.

    • to carry a large amount of sail.

    • to present an impressive appearance.

Origin of clew

1
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 Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use clew in a sentence

  • No one seemed to think of clewing up the sails, and thereby lessening the impetuous surges of the unfortunate galliot.

    Captain Canot | Brantz Mayer
  • But even then, with the utmost exertion of every man and boy on board, we barely succeeded in clewing all up.

  • No time for clewing up, or making snug: no thought of either.

  • If the wind is light, you may square the fore and main yards before clewing up.

    The Seaman's Friend | Richard Henry Dana
  • Meanwhile the merchant crew were clewing up and hauling down to the accompaniment of the usual cries.

    A Middy in Command | Harry Collingwood

British Dictionary definitions for clew

clew

/ (kluː) /


noun
  1. a ball of thread, yarn, or twine

  2. nautical either of the lower corners of a square sail or the after lower corner of a fore-and-aft sail

  1. (usually plural) the rigging of a hammock

  2. a rare variant of clue

verb
  1. (tr) to coil or roll into a ball

Origin of clew

1
Old English cliewen (vb); related to Old High German kliu ball

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012