Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Influence; pull.
- noun Power; muscle.
- noun A blow, especially with the fist.
- noun Baseball A long powerful hit.
- noun Sports An archery target.
- transitive verb To hit, especially with the fist.
- noun A piece of cloth, especially a baby's diaper.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A blow with the hand; a cuff.
- To patch; mend by sewing on a clout or patch; cobble; hence, to join clumsily.
- To cover with a piece of cloth or with rags; bandage.
- To rub with an old piece of cloth, felt, or the like.
- To strike with the hand; cuff.
- noun A patch; a piece of cloth, leather, etc., used to mend something.
- noun Any piece of cloth, especially a worthless piece, or one designed for a mean use; a rag.
- noun Any small piece; a fragment; a tatter; a bit.
- noun In archery: The mark fixed in the center of the butts at which archers are shooting.
- noun A small white target placed near the ground.
- noun An arrow that has hit the target.
- noun An iron plate fastened upon an axletree to keep it from wearing.
- noun Same as
clout-nail . - To stud or fasten with nails.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A cloth; a piece of cloth or leather; a patch; a rag.
- noun A swadding cloth.
- noun obsolete A piece; a fragment.
- noun The center of the butt at which archers shoot; -- probably once a piece of white cloth or a nail head.
- noun An iron plate on an axletree or other wood to keep it from wearing; a washer.
- noun Low A blow with the hand.
- noun a kind of wrought-iron nail heaving a large flat head; -- used for fastening clouts to axletrees, plowshares, etc., also for studding timber, and for various purposes.
- transitive verb To cover with cloth, leather, or other material; to bandage; patch, or mend, with a clout.
- transitive verb To join or patch clumsily.
- transitive verb To quard with an iron plate, as an axletree.
- transitive verb Low To give a blow to; to strike.
- transitive verb To stud with nails, as a timber, or a boot sole.
- transitive verb clotted cream, i. e., cream obtained by warming new milk.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun
Influence oreffectiveness , especially political. - noun regional, informal A
blow with the hand. - noun informal A
home run . - noun archery The center of the
butt at whicharchers shoot; probably once a piece of white cloth or anail head. - noun regional, dated A
swaddling cloth. - noun archaic A
cloth ; a piece of cloth orleather ; apatch ; arag . - noun archaic An
iron plate on anaxletree or other wood to keep it fromwearing ; awasher . - noun obsolete A
piece ; afragment . - verb To
hit , especially with thefist .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun special advantage or influence
- noun (boxing) a blow with the fist
- noun a target used in archery
- noun a short nail with a flat head; used to attach sheet metal to wood
- verb strike hard, especially with the fist
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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You speculated how the word clout came to mean “to steal.”
No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003
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You speculated how the word clout came to mean “to steal.”
No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003
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You speculated how the word clout came to mean “to steal.”
No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003
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You speculated how the word clout came to mean “to steal.”
No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003
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As cities around the U.S. struggle to raise money, a little-known financial-advisory firm has grown in clout and courted some controversy along the way.
Adviser Takes Heat for Helping Sell Off Public Assets Ianthe Jeanne Dugan 2010
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The company's clout is so strong in the art community that they were able to request original works with the theme of the Pink Ribbon that signifies one's support of the many charities fundraising for the fight against breast cancer.
Mat Gleason: On Arts Patronage, Corporate America Should Take a Hint From Hint Mint Mat Gleason 2010
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Groups with a lot of members gain clout, but those groups also gain strife.
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The industry's clout is more than financial, however.
Nancy Chuda: As TSCA Collapses, Toxic Baby Fights Back (VIDEO) Nancy Chuda 2010
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Bloomberg News CALCULATED RISK: Garanti Bankasi will provide a gateway for BBVA to gain clout in Turkey.
BBVA Lays Big Bet on Turkey Joe Parkinson 2010
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The Chinese military's political clout is expected to grow as the Communist Party's ruling Politburo Standing Committee — whose nine members are all civilians and don't include a foreign-policy specialist — prepares for China's change to new leadership in 2012.
China's Army Extends Sway Jeremy Page 2010
yarb commented on the word clout
...a new-hatched savage running wild about his native woodlands in a grass clout...
- Melville, Moby-Dick, ch. 12
July 24, 2008
amhey commented on the word clout
Ne'er cast a clout
Ere May be out!
Clout here means an item of clothing. Typically it meant don't get rid of your winter camisole (vest UK) before the end of May as it could get cold.
July 7, 2009
ravnsnaes commented on the word clout
Også "slagkraft"
January 5, 2010
Prolagus commented on the word clout
Mr. Pronunciation's bad day, or just an alternative pronunciation?
January 8, 2010
PossibleUnderscore commented on the word clout
I am totally aghast! Mr. Pronunciation has really let us down this time. You better add it to the list Pro.
January 9, 2010
gangerh commented on the word clout
Tout your clout.
January 9, 2010
jwjarvis commented on the word clout
empowered them with the necessary economic clout to break free from the confining view that health care was merely a generic good.
September 14, 2010
logophile77 commented on the word clout
See also beclout.
January 3, 2023