clapped-out
adjective
(of machinery or appliances) worn-out; dilapidated.
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clapped-out
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clapped out
clapped outadjective(clapped-out when prenominal) (esp of machinery) worn out; dilapidated
clapped-out
American
[klapt-out]
/ ˈklæptˈaʊt /
adjective
British Informal.
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(of machinery or appliances) worn-out; dilapidated.
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(of a person) exhausted; fatigued.
clapped out
British
adjective
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informal (clapped-out when prenominal) (esp of machinery) worn out; dilapidated
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extremely tired; exhausted
Etymology
Origin of clapped-out
First recorded in 1945–50
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:
For all the talk of him being too old for Edith, he doesn't seem like a clapped-out crock to me.
From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2013
"More like clapped-out Vauxhall Viva, five careless owners and far too many miles on the clock."
From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2012
The visible impact on the economy, through the recession that followed the financial crisis, and the price of rescuing the clapped-out banks, is obvious.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 30, 2012
The pristine records they produce belie the frankly rather clapped-out looking machines that continue to manufacture them.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 25, 2010
“Well, what in creation is she doing ferrying clapped-out Tiger Moths about, in that case? Give the Bloody Machiavellian English Intelligence Officer a call and get permission,” Jamie suggested.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Otherwise, he says, it's like putting a Ferrari engine in a "clapped out car".
From BBC ● Feb. 14, 2026
"What's the safest way to do this? I'm not trying to get clapped out," Bogdanski said.
From Salon ● Mar. 20, 2023
“Hi, my name is Anna,” she chanted, as she clapped out a rhythm that the others repeated back to her: “Ba-BAH-ba-ba-BAH.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 7, 2022
They tumble exhausted from clapped out lorries and cars that have barely made the journey.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 10, 2017
Yamu-nedjeh clapped out a rhythm with his hands and all one hundred thirty of us slammed our dolerite against the granite.
From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman
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.
