clinker
1 Americannoun
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any mistake or error.
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something that is a failure; a product of inferior quality.
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a wrong note in a musical performance.
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British. someone or something wonderful or exceedingly well-liked.
noun
noun
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a mass of incombustible matter fused together, as in the burning of coal.
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a hard Dutch brick, used especially for paving.
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a partially vitrified mass of brick.
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the scale of oxide formed on iron during forging.
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Geology. a mass of vitrified material ejected from a volcano.
verb (used without object)
noun
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the ash and partially fused residues from a coal-fired furnace or fire
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Also called: clinker brick. a hard brick used as a paving stone
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a partially vitrified brick or mass of brick
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slang something of poor quality, such as a film
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slang a mistake or fault, esp a wrong note in music
verb
Etymology
Origin of clinker1
First recorded in 1830–40; special use of clinker 2
Origin of clinker2
First recorded in 1680–90; clink 1 + -er 1
Origin of clinker3
First recorded in 1635–45; from Dutch klinker (formerly klinkaerd ) “slag”; also a kind of brick, derivative of klinken, clinken “to clink” (from the sound the material makes when struck)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On a recent visit, workers at Conch’s sprawling clinker facility monitored the AI model as it automatically adjusted production in real time.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 25, 2025
In the architectural age of minimalism and millennial gray, a wild and whimsical antidote made of old clinker bricks and jumbled shingles sits on a quiet street at the edge of L.A. and Culver City.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 21, 2025
"She has made enough ridiculous rulings in this case that nobody should be surprised if she makes another clinker," he told Salon.
From Salon • Aug. 12, 2024
"We found the combination of cement clinker and iron oxide is an excellent steelmaking slag because it foams and it flows well," said Dunant.
From Science Daily • May 22, 2024
By April the berries were in and a post-and- beam shed-barn, and by summer Carl could be seen framing up walls and mortaring clinker brick.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
