clink

1 of 3

verb

clinked; clinking; clinks

intransitive verb

: to give out a slight sharp short metallic sound

transitive verb

: to cause to clink

clink

2 of 3

noun (1)

: a clinking sound

clink

3 of 3

noun (2)

1
slang : a prison cell
2
slang : jail, prison

Examples of clink in a Sentence

Verb When she'd completed the toast, they clinked glasses. coins clinking in his pocket as he traipsed down the street
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The cubes clink against the sides and slowly melt around me, bringing my body temperature back to bearable. Katie Lockhart, Vogue, 12 Mar. 2024 Visitors from overseas sip dirty martinis and couples clink glasses of Champagne after scouting the building as a potential wedding venue. Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024 Swift raised her Cosmo in salute and clinked glasses around the table. Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2024 Each fragment clinked as it was dropped in a plastic cup. Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 4 Feb. 2024 Meanwhile, guests clinked their glasses to encourage Joey and Jess, 24, to kiss, and Rachel, 26, gave a touching speech. Dana Rose Falcone, Peoplemag, 30 Jan. 2024 Malone responded by simply adding an emoji showing two glasses clinking together for a cheers in a comment on the post. Tommy McArdle, Peoplemag, 13 Feb. 2024 Yellow ribbons and silver bells – tied to tree branches in solidarity with Israelis held hostage by Hamas in Gaza – fluttered and clinked in the wind. Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Jan. 2024 In front of the Capitol building on Wednesday, a nonprofit critical of big tech displayed cardboard cutouts of Mr. Zuckerberg and Mr. Chew sitting atop a mountain of cash while clinking champagne glasses. David McCabe, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2024
Noun
For the ever-important clink of the glasses, there’s French champagne and Anderson Valley brut as well as sparkling wine concoctions, such as a sage and honey-pear cocktail. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 12 Feb. 2024 Sitting on a stool in Café Jean-Paul on Lewis Wharf one May night in 1975, Mae Arnette gazed into the smoky darkness beyond the spotlight, where only the soft clink of a cocktail glass revealed the presence of her audience. Bryan Marquard, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Aug. 2023 But near the end of the assembly line, in a nook where pencils are imprinted with their logos, the sound is no more than the soft clink of the perfect little sticks falling into a heap. Danny Freedman, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2023 In its efforts to be a little more like the French Riviera, the Miami circuit made room for 10 yachts so that a very select group of high-paying fans could kick off their shoes, clink glasses, and follow the race from the comfort of a teak deck. Joshua Robinson, WSJ, 8 May 2022 Fushman: boom–clink. Daniel Duane, Outside Online, 5 Apr. 2021 Grand declarations of feelings aren’t really the show’s style, and Unstable underplays the moment with a wry recap of their misadventures together and a quick clink of glasses. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2023 Pop, fizz, clink! Maria Conti, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Jan. 2023 Glasses clink, conversation, a cocktail party. Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 1 Jan. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clink.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, of imitative origin

Noun (2)

probably from Clink, a prison in Southwark, London, England

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1515, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of clink was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near clink

Cite this Entry

“Clink.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clink. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

clink

verb
ˈkliŋk
: to make or cause to make a slight sharp short sound like that of metal being struck
glasses clinked
clink noun

More from Merriam-Webster on clink

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