clog

American  

[klog, klawg] / klɒg, klɔg /

verb (used with object)

clogged, clogging

1. to hinder or obstruct with thick or sticky matter; choke up.

   to clog a drain.

2. to crowd excessively, especially so that movement is impeded; overfill.

   Cars clogged the highway.

3. to encumber; hamper; hinder.

   Synonyms:

   fetter, trammel, impede

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verb (used without object)

clogged, clogging

1. to become clogged, encumbered, or choked up.

2. to stick; stick together.

3. to do a clog dance.

noun

1. anything that impedes motion or action; an encumbrance; a hindrance.

2. a shoe or sandal with a thick sole of wood, cork, rubber, or the like.

3. a similar but lighter shoe worn in the clog dance.

4. a heavy block, as of wood, fastened to a person or beast to impede movement.

5. clog dance.

6. British Dialect. a thick piece of wood.

clog ¹ British  

/ klɒɡ /

verb

1. to obstruct or become obstructed with thick or sticky matter

2. (tr) to encumber; hinder; impede

3. (tr) to fasten a clog or impediment to (an animal, such as a horse)

4. (intr) to adhere or stick in a mass

5. slang (in soccer) to foul (an opponent)

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noun

1. 1. any of various wooden or wooden-soled shoes

   2. ( as modifier )

      clog dance

2. a heavy block, esp of wood, fastened to the leg of a person or animal to impede motion

3. something that impedes motion or action; hindrance

4. slang to die

clog ² British  

/ klɒɡ /

verb

1. to use a photo-enabled mobile phone to take a photograph of (someone) and send it to a website without his or her knowledge or consent

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Other Word Forms

• anticlogging adjective
• cloggily adverb
• clogginess noun
• clogging noun
• cloggy adjective
• overclog verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of clog

1350–1400; Middle English, of uncertain origin

Explanation

A clog is a blockage, or something that gets in the way. A clog in your kitchen sink might mean you have to call a plumber before you can wash your dishes. A clog obstructs water from flowing through pipes, and it can also be figurative, like a clog in your city's restaurant inspection system that makes it impossible for people to open new cafes. When clog is a verb, it means to cause such a hindrance. A completely different kind of clog is a heavy, wooden-soled shoe. In the 14th century, a clogge was a "lump of wood," and the verb first meant, "hinder with a block of wood."

Example Sentences

The Navy acknowledged the reports of toilet problems in a statement last month, but cited ship leadership as saying that "clog incidents are addressed promptly by trained damage control and engineering personnel, with minimal downtime."

From Barron's • Mar. 17, 2026

Plastic bags clog streams and injure and kill marine mammals and wildlife.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026

Patients are being warned not to clog up A&E with everyday niggles as NHS figures show thousands turned to hospitals for minor ailments such as hiccups and ingrowing toenails last winter.

From BBC • Dec. 3, 2025

The robots navigate individually through blood vessels to reach a clog, guided by doctors or technicians using magnetic fields to steer them, says researcher J.J.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 1, 2025

They weren’t surprised that she was frozen mid-step, one black-and-white-striped stocking and a black clog shoe stretched ahead, not quite touching the ground.

From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles

Related Words

• choke
• congest
• fill
• hamper
• impede
• obstruct
• plug
• seal