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Glite Dictionary
clickety-clack

clickety-clack

1 7.7
A quick series of soft clicking sounds from machines or hard things hitting together
  • noun
  • /ˈklɪkɪti klæk/
translation icon : clic-clic

Examples

  • Oh, What's this clickety clacking in here?

  • The furniture shop was filled with the clickety-clack of workers assembling chairs and tables.

  • As the kids played with their toys, the clickety-clack of building blocks echoed through the room.

  • The clickety-clack of the keyboard filled the office as everyone typed away on their projects.

Synonyms

ticking
vsclickety-clack
27 1.2

A light regular tapping sound made by a clock or watch

is louder and faster with rapid machine like strikes
click-clack
vsclickety-clack
6.3

A series of quick, sharp sounds like train wheels or high heels

is faster and more continuous stressing rapid succession
clickety-click
vsclickety-clack
8.6

A fast, rhythmic clicking sound made by machines or repeated actions

is slightly more forceful and emphasizes alternating hard strikes

Antonyms

silence
660 2.0

A period with no sound or speech

stillness
38 3.5

A time of complete quiet and no movement that feels calm

How Fast

clatter
36 4.0
clickety-clack
1 7.7
to rattle
151 2.2
click
73 1.0

Surface Forms

clickety-clack singular
clickety-clacks plural

Morphology

clickety-clack = click + clack (transparent) = click + clack

The word is a reduplication of 'click' and 'clack', both of which are onomatopoeic sounds describing sharp noises.

Etymology

Clickety-clack comes from repeating the familiar words click and clack, which copy the quick sounds 'click' and 'clack' you hear from trains, hooves, or old typewriters. So, clickety-clack now describes a fast, rhythmic series of clicking and clacking sounds.