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to clonk

to clonk

1 8.3
To hit something so it makes a dull, heavy sound
  • verb
  • /klɒŋk/
translation icon : golpear
  • "I read this thing in the National Reporter," Charly piped up, "where these bad guys got mad at another bad guy for telling the police about something, and they clonked him on the head and stuffed a dead parakeet in his mouth."

Examples

  • She reached out behind her for an old aluminum phallus that happened to be hanging around and clonked Mr. Meant-Well on the head with it.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Now I got it, that's the guy that clonked the skipper.

  • - Stand here, and as soon as he comes through here, clonk him.

  • And that's when she clonked him.

  • All the same, except for different sizes and different black-and-blue marks where they had clonked each other.

  • Sounds pretty normal; my torts sometimes wake up and rearrange their furniture (clunk and clonk in their enclosure) for 20 or so minutes, maybe bask a little under the ceramic heat lamp, then crawl back into their hide house.

    Blog text (16)
  • I accidentally clonked my head against the doorframe while walking in.

  • He swung the hammer and clonked the nail into the wood, producing a loud sound.

  • The bag clonked against the metal railing as he hurried past.

Synonyms

to thump
vsto clonk
27 3.4

To hit something hard so it makes a dull sound

is any hit that makes a dull, heavy sound
to conk
vsto clonk
  • Archaic
3 8.6

To hit someone on the head with force

is the general noisy strike and not restricted to heads
to thud
vsto clonk
2 3.5

To make a heavy, dull sound when something hits or falls

is used for a hit specifically producing that dull heavy sound
to whump
vsto clonk
1 9.0

To hit something so it makes a dull heavy sound

covers hitting that produces a dull heavy sound, not only falling
to plunk
vsto clonk
1 7.1

To move with a dull thud, as when a horse's hooves hit the ground

refers to a dull heavy strike rather than varied hollow sounds
to whuff
vsto clonk
9.9

To hit something so it makes a dull heavy sound

is the broad term for any dull heavy striking noise
to bomp
vsto clonk
9.5

To hit something so it makes a dull thumping sound

focuses more generally on any dull heavy impact sound

How Hard

to smash
311 2.1
to strike
553 2.4
to clonk
1 8.3
to knock
937 1.0
tap
66 1.0

Surface Forms

clonk infinitive
clonked past
clonked past participle
clonking present participle
clonks third person singular

Etymology

Clonk comes from copying the sound of a heavy hit, so to clonk something is to hit it so it makes a dull, heavy noise. That's why saying you 'clonked' something means you struck it with a solid, thudding sound.