club
Americannoun
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clubs
plural
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a heavy stick, usually thicker at one end than at the other, suitable for use as a weapon; a cudgel.
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a group of persons organized for a social, literary, athletic, political, or other purpose.
They organized a computer club.
- Synonyms:
- society, association
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the building or rooms occupied by such a group.
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an organization that offers its subscribers certain benefits, as discounts, bonuses, or interest, in return for regular purchases or payments.
a book club; a record club; a Christmas club.
- Synonyms:
- society, association
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Sports.
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a stick or bat used to drive a ball in various games, as golf.
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a nightclub, especially one in which people dance to popular music, drink, and socialize.
Last night we went to all the clubs in town.
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a black trefoil-shaped figure on a playing card.
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a card bearing such figures.
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(used with a singular or plural verb) clubs, the suit so marked.
Clubs is trump. Clubs are trump.
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Nautical.
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a short spar attached to the end of a gaff to allow the clew of a gaff topsail to extend beyond the peak of the gaff.
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a short spar attached to the truck of a mast to support the upper part of a club topsail.
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verb (used with object)
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clubs,
present (3rd person singular)
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clubbed,
past participle, past
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clubbing
present participle
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to beat with or as with a club.
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to gather or form into a clublike mass.
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to unite; combine; join together.
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to contribute as one's share toward a joint expense; make up by joint contribution (often followed by up ortogether ).
They clubbed their dollars together to buy the expensive present.
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to defray by proportional shares.
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to hold (a rifle, shotgun, etc.) by the barrel, so as to use the stock as a club.
verb (used without object)
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clubs,
present (3rd person singular)
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clubbed,
past participle, past
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clubbing
present participle
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Informal. to go to nightclubs, especially to dance, drink, and socialize.
The students at that university go clubbing every Friday night.
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to combine or join together, as for a common purpose.
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to attend a club or a club's activities.
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to gather into a mass.
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to contribute to a common fund.
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Nautical. to drift in a current with an anchor, usually rigged with a spring, dragging or dangling to reduce speed.
adjective
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of or relating to a club.
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consisting of a combination of foods offered at the price set on the menu.
They allow no substitutions on the club luncheon.
noun
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a stout stick, usually with one end thicker than the other, esp one used as a weapon
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a stick or bat used to strike the ball in various sports, esp golf See golf club
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short for Indian club
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a group or association of people with common aims or interests
a wine club
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the room, building, or facilities used by such a group
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( in combination )
clubhouse
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a building in which elected, fee-paying members go to meet, dine, read, etc
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a commercial establishment in which people can drink and dance; disco See also nightclub
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an organization, esp in a shop, set up as a means of saving
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an informal word for friendly society
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the black trefoil symbol on a playing card
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a card with one or more of these symbols or ( when pl ) the suit of cards so marked
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nautical
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a spar used for extending the clew of a gaff topsail beyond the peak of the gaff
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short for club foot
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slang pregnant
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slang away from work due to sickness, esp when receiving sickness benefit
verb
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(tr) to beat with or as if with a club
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(often foll by together) to gather or become gathered into a group
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(often foll by together) to unite or combine (resources, efforts, etc) for a common purpose
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(tr) to use (a rifle or similar firearm) as a weapon by holding the barrel and hitting with the butt
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(intr) nautical to drift in a current, reducing speed by dragging anchor
Synonym Usage
See circle.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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clubsimple
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clubssimple
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have clubbedperfect
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has clubbedperfect
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am clubbingprogressive
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are clubbingprogressive
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is clubbingprogressive
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have been clubbingperfect progressive
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has been clubbingperfect progressive
Past
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clubbedsimple
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had clubbedperfect
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was clubbingprogressive
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were clubbingprogressive
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had been clubbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of club
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English clubbe, from Old Norse klubba; akin to clump
Explanation
A club is a group of people who share an interest, whether it's playing chess or hiding out in a tree house together. You might join a club if you love to play golf or discuss books with a friendly bunch of people. This kind of club is a formal group — another type is simply a big, heavy stick, or a long metal one used for hitting a golf ball. You can even use it as a verb: "Don't club that snake! Just move it over to the field." The root word is the Old Norse klubba, or "cudgel, club."
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:
They specialise in developing goalkeepers who are good with their feet, including Penders, who recorded the highest average position while playing out from the back under Rosenior at the Ligue 1 club early last season.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
The club are adamant government documents fully support their case - but, Severin said, if these were already available to the Commission they may not be much use in an appeal.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
More willing to listen to his body and to communicate what it’s telling him with the ball club that relies on him so much.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Right now, I really like Da Prato, which is run by this chef Elisa Da Prato, and she’s calling it a supper club.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
He says that’s why it surprised him that I didn’t want to join the club at first.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
However, he said it was important to emphasise that many under-30s were "making do" without clubs and instead creating their own events.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
Five of the top six places have gone to clubs not in the traditional six in the past three years - the same as the previous eight years combined.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced a 20% cut in business rates for qualifying pubs, social clubs and live music venues in England, effective from April 2027.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
Others that could benefit from middle class caution are warehouse clubs such as BJs and Costco as well as off-price retailers like Ross Stores, Burlington and TJ Maxx.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Our parents provide the list of ingredients and remind us to make healthy choices: one sport, two clubs, one artistic goal, community service, no grades below a B, because really, nobody’s average, not around here.
From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson
It completed a remarkable fightback from MI London, led by Kerr who had not hit a six in The Hundred before this innings, in which she clubbed four alongside five fours.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Philadelphia’s Trea Turner and Alex Bohm each clubbed singles in the fourth inning, but little came to fruition.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026
Tibbs clubbed 28 home runs in his junior year at Florida State, powering the Seminoles to their first College World Series trip since 2019.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026
Overton clubbed 34 from 17, though a heist never seemed likely.
From BBC ● Jan. 22, 2026
Once you get used to it, reality is as irresistible as a club, and I was clubbed into the cellar before I caught the hint.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
The scene where Harris approached a captured bug, rocking an ankle-length black trench coat with his blonde hair in a close crew cut, was the closest “Troopers” came to clubbing the audience in the ribs.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
The 23-year-old said there was now an "ambient awareness that anybody could be filming" when out clubbing and felt it could "subconsciously change your behaviour without you even realising it".
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
It’s such a primal feeling to go clubbing, to all come together and dance to a beat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
Possible targets include rheumatoid arthritis, anemia and finger clubbing.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2026
Lately Sam had been showing up to my competitions late, if at all, and dressed like he was going out clubbing in Harlem in the 1920s.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
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