clinker

1 of 2

noun (1)

clink·er ˈkliŋ-kər

plural clinkers

Synonyms of clinker next

British : something first-rate

: a wrong note

: a serious mistake or error : boner

: an utter failure : flop

: something of poor quality

clinker

2 of 2

noun (2)

clin·ker ˈkliŋ-kər

plural clinkers

or clinker brick plural clinker bricks : a brick that has been burned in the kiln to the point of becoming darkened or deformed

… the shiny, burnt, misshapen bricks, known as clinkers, which are the unloved and usually unused outer layer of the firing process. When banged together, they make a clinking sound.—

Stephen Best

… "clinkers," bricks that were discarded because they became deformed or discolored after getting too close to the heat in the kiln.—

Katy Tomasulo

"Over-baked and distorted," he [an unidentified Melbourne, Australia brick recycler] explained. Even so, these days retrieved clinker bricks can sell for over $1 each!—

Jenny Brown

Its corner-wrapping porch is complemented by generous eaves and abundant use of clinker brick—dense, misshapen bricks created by exposure to high temperatures …—

Sarah Hilbert

… a clinker-brick two-story orphanage …—

Anthony Doerr

: stony matter fused together

The manufacturing of cement involves the mixing of limestone, silica, iron oxide, and alumina. This mixture is heated by coal to very high temperatures … , transforming the mixture into a pebble-like substance called clinker, which is then mixed with gypsum and ground to a fine powder to make cement.—

Paul Robbins

also : a piece of clinker

When I was a kid in Parma, one of the chores assigned to me and my brothers was the removing of the "clinkers" from the old coal furnace in the basement of our house, as well as the one in the church next door. —

Loren Yadon

Examples of clinker in a Sentence

Noun (1) a documentary that had such clinkers as a reference to Iran as an Arab nation all of the toy company's new offerings for the Christmas season proved to be clinkers

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Noun

Portland cement — the most common type, developed in the early 19th century — is made predominantly of a substance called clinker. —

Lara Williams, The Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2024 The theater, Gold's Gym and a few shops are housed in a building that was once a shed for clinker, a key cement ingredient, according to the San Antonio Express-News. —

Madalyn Mendoza, Axios, 31 Oct. 2024 In other words, a mixture of mainly turkeys and a couple of blockbusters that hopefully will pay for all the clinkers and then some. —

Shawn Tully, Fortune, 28 Feb. 2024 Last year, the two companies said their trial project in Spain produced clinker without fossil fuels. —

Yusuf Khan, WSJ, 24 Aug. 2023 See all Example Sentences for clinker