click
1 Americannoun
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a slight, sharp sound.
At the click of the latch, the dog barked.
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a small device for preventing backward movement of a mechanism, as a detent or pawl.
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Phonetics. any one of a variety of ingressive, usually implosive, speech sounds, phonemic in some languages, produced by suction occlusion and plosive or affricative release.
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any one of a variety of familiar sounds used in calling or urging on horses or other animals, in expressing reprimand or sympathy, or produced in audible kissing.
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Computers. the act of rapidly depressing and releasing a button on a mouse or other input device, usually the left-hand button, as to select an icon.
verb (used without object)
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clicks,
present (3rd person singular)
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clicked,
past participle, past
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clicking
present participle
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to emit or make a slight, sharp sound, or series of such sounds, as by the cocking of a pistol.
The door clicked shut.
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Informal.
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to succeed; make a hit.
If the play clicks, the producer will be rich.
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to fit together; function well together.
They get along in public, but their personalities don't really click.
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to become intelligible.
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Computers. to rapidly depress and release one of the buttons on a mouse or other input device, usually the left-hand button.
Just click on the link to get to the site.
verb (used with object)
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clicks,
present (3rd person singular)
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clicked,
past participle, past
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clicking
present participle
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to cause to click.
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to strike together with a click.
He clicked his heels and saluted.
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Computers.
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to select (a screen object) by rapidly depressing and releasing one of the buttons on a mouse or other input device, usually the left-hand button.
Click “OK” to continue .
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to rapidly depress and release (a button on a mouse or other input device).
Click the trackpad button once.
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noun
noun
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a short light often metallic sound
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the locking member of a ratchet mechanism, such as a pawl or detent
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the movement of such a mechanism between successive locking positions
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phonetics any of various stop consonants, found in Khoisan and as borrowings in southern Bantu languages, that are produced by the suction of air into the mouth
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slang a kilometre
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computing an act of pressing and releasing a button on a mouse
verb
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to make or cause to make a clicking sound
to click one's heels
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(usually foll by on) computing to press and release (a button on a mouse) or to select (a particular function) by pressing and releasing a button on a mouse
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slang (intr) to be a great success
that idea really clicked
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informal (intr) to become suddenly clear
it finally clicked when her name was mentioned
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slang (intr) to go or fit together with ease
they clicked from their first meeting
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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clicksimple
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clickssimple
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have clickedperfect
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has clickedperfect
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am clickingprogressive
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are clickingprogressive
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is clickingprogressive
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have been clickingperfect progressive
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has been clickingperfect progressive
Past
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clickedsimple
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had clickedperfect
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was clickingprogressive
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were clickingprogressive
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had been clickingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of click1
First recorded in 1575–85; perhaps imitative, but perhaps from Dutch klikk (noun), klikken (verb)
Origin of click2
First recorded in 1950–55; originally U.S. military slang; further origin unclear
Explanation
A click is a sound like a sharp tap. Your dog might start barking excitedly every evening when he hears the click of your key turning in the lock. And you might click your computer mouse when you are excited about getting to another page on the web. Click is also a verb, meaning to make the sound of a click: "Don't click your tongue at me — I can have ice cream for dinner if I want to!" You can use the word in a figurative way as well, to mean "fall suddenly into place," as when a confusing math problem finally clicks for you. Increasingly, to click is to tap on a computer icon with a mouse: "Click through to my new website!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"And I am purposely trying to put songs down for that very purpose, to have a click track and my vocals to where any, any arrangement can be done," Parton added.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
One way to begin your research is to click the tickers for more information.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
Responding to a glut of what it saw as low-quality, AI-generated content from aspiring thought leaders, LinkedIn recently introduced a “seems like AI slop” tag users can click for posts that they find questionable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Cinematographer Brendan Galvin and editors David Rosenbloom and Joe Rosenbloom take us inside the bodyguard’s POV as he notes each pen click, pocket grasp and suspicious glance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
“I am famous from the courts of Chang’an to the caliphate of Baghdad for my honesty. They speak of my bargains among the tongueless island tribes—they click about me, like you do, Rasseem.”
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
Coverage should not prioritize "clicks, engagement, or sensationalism," the spokesperson said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
The BBC spoke to several content creators who all denied being motivated by social media views, clicks or revenue, and insisted they were supporting conservation or attempting to change public perceptions of sharks.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
“We do not get paid for clicks or tokens or chats. The gamification of the most significant development in modern economic history seems to us misplaced.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026
It was confusing and frustrating, full of obscure abbreviations and requiring way too many clicks to put in a simple order.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Mom clicks the button again, and it goes back to black with a gentle zapping sound.
From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day
Scrolling back through that memory, Freid said something clicked when he thought about the alarmingly close relationship millennials still have with their parents in adulthood including still being on the family cellphone plan.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
It had finally clicked for me that things would not work out with the guy I’d been dating for a few years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The employee clicked a malicious link in an email and entered Microsoft 365 credentials into a fraudulent login page, IEH said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
When I clicked on the invitation, though, something felt off.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
She clicked her tongue and hurried to join him.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
You can begin your own research by clicking on the tickers for more information.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
The team would put the players up in hotel rooms with two beds, subjecting Freeman to the incessant clicking of Heyward texting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
An amateur cricket match has made global headlines after a fielder was accused of cheating by clicking his fingers to get a wicket.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
The sound of pliers clicking filled a workshop in eastern China's Hangzhou as a group of women practised stripping wires, their female instructor moving around the classroom to offer advice.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
She spoke Zamani, the language of the East, like them, but her Yaba dialect gave her words a sharp, clicking quality.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
