clout

[ klout ]
See synonyms for clout on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a blow, especially with the hand; cuff: The bully gave him a painful clout on the head.

  2. Informal. pull; strong influence; muscle, especially political power: a wealthy campaign contributor with clout at city hall.

  1. Baseball. a long hit, especially an extra-base hit: A hard clout to deep center field drove in the winning run.

  2. Archery.

    • the mark or target shot at, especially in long-distance shooting.

    • a shot that hits the mark.

  3. Also called clout nail . a nail for attaching sheet metal to wood, having a short shank with a broad head.

  4. Archaic.

    • a patch or piece of cloth or other material used to mend something.

    • any worthless piece of cloth; rag.

    • an article of clothing (usually used contemptuously).

verb (used with object)
  1. to strike, especially with the hand; cuff.

  2. Archaic.

    • to bandage.

    • to patch; mend.

Origin of clout

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English clūt “piece of cloth or metal”; cognate with Middle Low German klūte, Old Norse klūtr

Other words from clout

  • clout·er, noun

Words Nearby clout

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use clout in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for clout

clout

/ (klaʊt) /


noun
  1. informal a blow with the hand or a hard object

  2. power or influence, esp in politics

  1. archery

    • the target used in long-distance shooting

    • the centre of this target

    • a shot that hits the centre

  2. Also called: clout nail a short, flat-headed nail used esp for attaching sheet metal to wood

  3. British dialect

    • a piece of cloth: a dish clout

    • a garment

    • a patch

verb(tr)
  1. informal to give a hard blow to, esp with the hand

  2. to patch with a piece of cloth or leather

Origin of clout

1
Old English clūt piece of metal or cloth, clūtian to patch (C14: to strike with the hand); related to Dutch kluit a lump, and to clod

Derived forms of clout

  • clouter, noun

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