Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for "clad"
Jump To:
Synonyms

clad

1 American  
[klad] / klæd /

verb

  1. a simple past tense and past participle of clothe.


adjective

  1. dressed.

    ill-clad vagrants.

  2. covered.

    vine-clad cottages.

clad 2 American  
[klad] / klæd /

verb (used with object)

clad, cladding
  1. to bond a metal to (another metal), especially to provide with a protective coat.


clad- 3 American  
  1. variant of clado- before a vowel.


clad 1 British  
/ klæd /

verb

  1. a past participle of clothe

"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

clad 2 British  
/ klæd /

verb

  1. (tr) to bond a metal to (another metal), esp to form a protective coating

"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 clad1

before 950; Middle English cladd ( e ), Old English clāthod ( e ) clothed. See clothe, -ed 2

Origin of clad2

First recorded in 1935–40; special use of clad 1

Explanation

Clad means "dressed or covered." Most kids go to school clad in jeans and t-shirts, but students in the Shakespeare club might show up clad in velvet gowns or leather breeches. As a verb, clad is the past tense and past particle of “clothe,” as in “the leprechaun clad himself in green.” It’s also an adjective that describes being covered or clothed, so a building can be clad in brick, while a person can be clad in head-to-toe sequins. It’s an old-fashioned word, kind of like “shod,” which means “wearing footwear.”

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing clad

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:

The homes, mostly clad in wooden exteriors, none more than two stories high, are scattered along 10 miles of coastline about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

After a rousing performance by a white-robe clad vocal collective co-founded by Pharrell Williams, Lucas’ wife Mellody Hobson noted that, “George kept saying, ‘Will this person come?

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026

Had they been plastered, clad in ceramic, or built in raw concrete, they would have lent tangible weight and heft to the vaults.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

A posse of extras clad in white jumpsuits and little black aprons would occasionally flood the set, tidying up and moving the furniture into new configurations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

As usual, he’s clad entirely in red, a tone so deep that it might appear black at first glance.

From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black

The exterior metal cladding of the addition features a luminescent pink paint coating called Pink Kandi.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

But the Ministry of Housing said in a statement it would speed up the process of removing cladding, providing a more proportionate, clear and consistent approach to a complex issue.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

The broad strokes of dark composite cladding along the rocker panels, lower front and rear fascia, and around the wheel wells, signal its soft-road sensibilities—as does the 8.5 inches of ground clearance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

Sophie Bishener, leaseholder and campaigner with the End our Cladding Scandal group, said that flats with unsafe cladding left unremediated were like "prisons", and this is having a "devastating" impact on people's lives.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

The cladding of frost on thorny branches was thawing and fat drops drip-drip-dripping.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training