calk

American  

[kawk] / kɔk /

noun

1. Also a projection on a horseshoe to prevent slipping on ice, pavement, etc.

2. Also a similar device on the heel or sole of a shoe to prevent slipping.

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verb (used with object)

1. to provide with calks.

2. to injure with a calk.

calk ¹ British  

/ ˈkɔːkɪn, kɔːk, ˈkæl- /

noun

1. a metal projection on a horse's shoe to prevent slipping

2. a set of spikes or a spiked plate attached to the sole of a boot, esp by loggers, to prevent slipping

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verb

1. to provide with calks

2. to wound with a calk

calk ² British  

/ kɔːk /

verb

1. a variant spelling of caulk

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calk ³ British  

/ kɔːk /

verb

1. (tr) to transfer (a design) by tracing it with a blunt point from one sheet backed with loosely fixed colouring matter onto another placed underneath

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Etymology

Origin of calk

1580–90; perhaps a back formation from calkin, taken as a verb calk + -in present participle suffix ( Middle English -inde ), confused with -ing ²

Example Sentences

Uses: to calk or waterproof boats, insulate wires, or patch holes in shoe soles.

From Time Magazine Archive

All she wanted was to be allowed to get on with what mattered: calk the windows; weatherstrip the door.

From Time Magazine Archive

One of the most popular courses is "The Self-Confident Home Mechanic," designed to teach students how to repair light switches, calk pipes and fix appliances.

From Time Magazine Archive

Such a practice will render unnecessary the widespread and popular fad of giving the outer quarter and heel calk of hind shoes an extreme outward bend.

From Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by Michener, Charles B.

Among the fatal cases are the open joints with complications as severed tendons, those occasioned by calk wounds in horses that are stabled, and nail punctures of the feet.

From Lameness of the Horse Veterinary Practitioners' Series, No. 1 by Lacroix, John Victor