clapper
Americannoun
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a person who applauds.
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the tongue of a bell.
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Slang. the tongue.
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Usually clappers. two flat sticks held between the fingers and struck rhythmically against each other to produce abrupt, sharp sounds.
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Printing. a platen press.
noun
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a person or thing that claps
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a contrivance for producing a sound of clapping, as for scaring birds
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Also called: tongue. a small piece of metal suspended within a bell that causes it to sound when made to strike against its side
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a slang word for tongue
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informal to move extremely fast
Etymology
Origin of clapper
First recorded in 1250–1300, clapper is from the Middle English word claper. See clap 1, -er 1
Explanation
The tongue of a bell — the part inside that swings to make the bell ring — is called the clapper. The Liberty Bell cracked the first time the clapper struck the sides of the bell. The bell was recast twice, but eventually the clapper cracked that bell as well. The noun clapper is based on clap, from the Old English word clappan, which means to clap, throb, or beat. The word is supposed to be imitative of the sound the thing makes. When the clapper strikes the inside of a bell, it makes the bell ring. If you need the bell to be silent, you have to muffle the clapper to keep it from striking the inside of the bell and making a sound.
Vocabulary lists containing clapper
Much Ado About Nothing
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The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
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Scythe
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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.
Upon hearing the 10-second clapper in the final round, Chisora threw everything at Wallin and put down his rival, who was saved by the bell.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2025
That clapper, William Sherman, a retiree from the Beaverdale neighborhood of Des Moines, was more than happy to share his feeling.
From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
He measured mileage by attaching a rod inside a wagon wheel — based on the circumference of the wheel, a clapper would sound at each mile and that’s where a marker would go.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 22, 2020
Julia: The clapper, most ingeniously used to turn on and off a Christmas tree.
From Slate ● Dec. 18, 2019
Somewhere inside was an old bronze clapper belonging to the bell of the Desert Gold, the ship that had gone down with King Fieldspar on his return from the Trove.
From "The Reader" by Traci Chee
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
