*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of clank

Onomatopoeic.

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A loud, hard sound of metal hitting metal. · Synonym of clanker (“a robot or artificial intelligence”).

verb

To make a clanking sound · To cause to sound with a clank.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Onomatopoeic.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "onomatopoeic",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Onomatopoeic"
    }
  ],
  "links": [],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A loud, hard sound of metal hitting metal.",
        "Synonym of clanker (“a robot or artificial intelligence”)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory",
        "humorous"
      ],
      "recordId": "bfc308d9f914eb94bdba73c557d5660b70eff23c69941260e12957d73625cd18",
      "rawRecordSha256": "a8181fa0036204d6515f12d11227f0964ec0bfd661df64d51ee46c805a41924e",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 517961
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To make a clanking sound",
        "To cause to sound with a clank."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive",
        "transitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "c1f6aa355154f298c069d4ca12e485053e15218a9999f23f7317acfb3fc2c8a6",
      "rawRecordSha256": "4e5ee5619607036890914104a41535eda97b83728aea69f195a34d7d61b96752",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 517962
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for clank →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y2xhbms