a sharp, hard, nonresonant sound, like that produced by two pieces of metal striking, one against the other:
the clank of chains; the clank of an iron gate slamming shut.
verb (used without object)
2.
to make such a sound.
3.
to move with such sounds:
The old jalopy clanked up the hill.
verb (used with object)
4.
to cause to make a sharp sound, as metal in collision:
He clanked the shovel against the pail.
5.
to place, put, set, etc., with a clank:
to clank the cell door shut.
Origin
1605-15; < Dutchklank sound
Related forms
clankingly, adverb
clankingness, noun
clankless, adjective
Examples from the web for clank
Avoid jewelry such as multiple bracelets or chains, which can clank and rattle and brush against your microphone, creating noise.
He heard the hateful clank of their chains, he felt them cringe and grovel, and there rose within him a protest and a prophecy.
The clank of keys sends a thrill of joy to my heart.
Rose set the box on the counter with a satisfying clank.
Each weapon feels powerful, especially after players first hear the thud of a bat or clank of the frying pan.
Inside the forward operating base here, weights clank late into the night from a gym in a tent.
In the winter the radiators spit and clank while the hint of darkness never seems to leave the daylight.
The movie is also saddled with a mechanical structure so unwieldy you can hear it clank.
He heard the clank of the corporal fitter's bicycle where it juddered over the ground to his right.
Nearly every line of the script drops from the actors' mouths with the leaden clank of exposition, timed with bad sitcom beats.
British Dictionary definitions for clank
clank
/klæŋk/
noun
1.
an abrupt harsh metallic sound
verb
2.
to make or cause to make such a sound
3.
(intransitive) to move or operate making such a sound
Derived Forms
clankingly, adverb
Word Origin
C17: of imitative origin
Word Origin and History for clank
v.
1610s, perhaps echoic, perhaps a blend of clang (v.) and clink (v.), perhaps from a Low German source (cf. Middle Dutch clank, Dutch klank, Old High German klanc, Middle Low German klank, German Klang).
n.
1650s, from clank (v.). Reduplicated form clankety-clank attested from 1895.