clank

English

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

• (without æ-raising) IPA^(key): /ˈklæŋk/, [ˈkʰl̥æŋk]

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (æ-raising)
  • (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈkleɪ̯ŋk/, [ˈkʰl̥eɪ̯ŋk] ~ /ˈklɛ̃ŋk/, [ˈkʰl̥ɛ̃ŋk]
• Rhymes: -æŋk
• Hyphenation: clank

Noun

clank (plural clanks)

1. A loud, hard sound of metal hitting metal.
2. (derogatory, humorous) Synonym of clanker (“a robot or artificial intelligence”).
   • 2001 February, Phil Foglio, Kaja Foglio, Girl Genius‎^[1], number 1, Seattle, Wash.: Studio Foglio, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 September 2001, page 6:

     [NO] CLANKS ⇨

   • 2009, Daniel Robinson, “Robo-Gambit”, in Flommy the Robot, Part One: Attack of the Robot Planet, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 13:

     [S]he […] finds herself surrounded by three rather repulsive young males. Even in her fear, her curves are noteworthy. “What do you want?” she cries. “Are you a clank, baby?”

   • 2009 July 15, Wayne Throop, “Is Superman Damaged Goods?”, in rec.arts.sf.written‎^[2] (Usenet), archived from the original on 20 July 2026:

     Well, even on earth (depending on the continuity) he's been up against evil clones and/or tinkered clones of himself, or pseudo-Krypotonian constructs or clanks.

Usage notes

• Clank usually expresses a duller or less resounding sound than clang, and a deeper and stronger sound than clink.

Derived terms

• clankless
• clanky

Translations

loud, hard metallic sound

• Azerbaijani: zanqıltı
• Czech: cinkání n, řinčení n
• Finnish: kalahdus (fi) (individual), kalina (fi) (repetitive)
• French: cliquetis (fr) m
• Macedonian: ѕвек m (dzvek), ѕвекот m (dzvekot), ждрингот m (ždringot)
• Russian: лязг (ru) m (ljazg), бряца́ние (ru) n (brjacánije)
• Serbo-Croatian: zvek (sh)

Verb

clank (third-person singular simple present clanks, present participle clanking, simple past and past participle clanked)

1. (intransitive) To make a clanking sound

   The chains clanked.

   • 1922, E[ric] R[ücker] Eddison, The Worm Ouroboros: A Romance, London: Jonathan Cape […], →OCLC, page 7:

     Slung from his shoulders clanks a two-handed sword, the pommel a huge star-ruby carven in the image of a heart, for the heart is his sign and symbol.

   • 2022 January 12, Benedict le Vay, “The heroes of Soham...”, in RAIL, number 948, page 42:

     Far less straightforward was what happened at about 0130 on Friday June 2 1944, as a long goods train was chuffing and clanking its unhurried way across the darkened landscape towards Soham, from Ely.

2. (transitive) To cause to sound with a clank.

   The prisoners clank their chains.

Derived terms

• clanker
• clankingly

Translations

to make a clanking sound

• Arabic: قَعْقَعَ (qaʕqaʕa)
• Czech: řinčet (cs) impf
• Esperanto: klaki
• Finnish: kalauttaa (fi), kalahtaa (fi) (individual), kalistaa (fi), kalistella (fi), kalisuttaa (fi), kalahdella (fi) (repetitive)
• French: cliqueter (fr)
• German: klirren (de), kläppern
• Japanese: ガチャガチャする (ja) (がちゃがちゃする, gachagacha suru)
• Portuguese: retinir (pt)
• Russian: ля́згать (ru) impf (ljázgatʹ), греме́ть (ru) impf (gremétʹ), бряца́ть (ru) impf (brjacátʹ), звя́кать (ru) impf (zvjákatʹ)

to cause to sound with a clank

• German: aneinanderschlagen