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clinker

1 American  
[kling-ker] / ˈklɪŋ kər /

noun

Slang.

  1. any mistake or error.

  2. something that is a failure; a product of inferior quality.

  3. a wrong note in a musical performance.

  4. British. someone or something wonderful or exceedingly well-liked.

clinker 2 American  
[kling-ker] / ˈklɪŋ kər /

noun

  1. a person or thing that clinks.

clinker 3 American  
[kling-ker] / ˈklɪŋ kər /

noun

  1. a mass of incombustible matter fused together, as in the burning of coal.

  2. a hard Dutch brick, used especially for paving.

  3. a partially vitrified mass of brick.

  4. the scale of oxide formed on iron during forging.

  5. Geology. a mass of vitrified material ejected from a volcano.

verb (used without object)

  1. to form clinkers in burning.

clinker British  
/ ˈklɪŋkə /

noun

  1. the ash and partially fused residues from a coal-fired furnace or fire

  2. Also called: clinker brick.  a hard brick used as a paving stone

  3. a partially vitrified brick or mass of brick

  4. slang something of poor quality, such as a film

  5. slang a mistake or fault, esp a wrong note in music

"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

verb

  1. (intr) to form clinker during burning

"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

Etymology

Origin of clinker1

First recorded in 1830–40; special use of clinker 2

Origin of clinker2

First recorded in 1680–90; clink 1 + -er 1

Origin of clinker3

First recorded in 1635–45; from Dutch klinker (formerly klinkaerd ) “slag”; also a kind of brick, derivative of klinken, clinken “to clink” (from the sound the material makes when struck)

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.

Clinker is the binder that causes cement to harden when it reacts with water.

From Scientific American • Feb. 9, 2023

How it works: Clinker is mixed with gypsum at a ratio of 20 or 25 to one.

From Scientific American • Feb. 9, 2023

Humphry Clinker by Tobias Smollett Mr Martin is as smooth as any gentleman of the road.

From The Guardian • May 18, 2012

The grand parts of Scott are within the reach of more minds than the finest humours in Humphrey Clinker.

From Letters of John Keats to His Family and Friends by Keats, John

"We go for him when we done unload dese we got," said Clinker.

From Brother Against Brother The War on the Border by Optic, Oliver

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.