clink

1 of 3

verb

ˈkliŋk 

clinked; clinking; clinks

intransitive verb

: to give out a slight sharp short metallic sound

transitive verb

: to cause to clink

clink

2 of 3

noun (1)

: a clinking sound

clink

3 of 3

noun (2)

1

slang : a prison cell

2

slang : jail, prison

Synonyms

Verb

• chink
• jingle
• tingle
• tinkle

Noun (2)

• bastille
• big house [slang]
• bridewell
• brig
• calaboose
• can
• cooler
• coop
• guardroom
• hock
• hold
• hoosegow
• jail
• jailhouse
• joint [slang]
• jug
• lockup
• nick [British slang]
• pen
• penitentiary
• pokey [slang]
• prison
• quod [British slang]
• slam
• slammer
• stir [slang]
• stockade
• tolbooth [Scottish]

Examples of clink in a Sentence

Verb

When she'd completed the toast, they clinked glasses.

coins clinking in his pocket as he traipsed down the street

Noun (2)

I once spent a night in the clink, and it's an experience I don't want to repeat

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

In the final moments of the broadcast she was shown clinking glasses with Jay-Z as his wife, Beyoncé, accepted the night's top honor, album of the year, for the first time. —Bryan West, USA TODAY, 3 Feb. 2025

Swift was seen on camera clinking champagne glasses with Beyoncé's husband, Jay-Z, after the Cowboy Carter artist accepted her Grammy onstage on Feb. 2. —Lindsay Kimble, People.com, 3 Feb. 2025

Noun

In the coastal towns, surfers line the golden sand beaches and tuk-tuks zip along twisting roads, their horns blending with the rhythmic clink of fishmongers’ knives and the sizzle of hoppers frying in street stalls. —Christine Chitnis, Vogue, 8 Jan. 2025

When given a shake, the piece emits echoing clinks evocative of rushing water. —Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, of imitative origin

Noun (2)

probably from Clink, a prison in Southwark, London, England

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1515, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing clink

• the clink

Kids Definition

clink

verb

ˈkliŋk

: to make or cause to make a slight sharp short sound like that of metal being struck

glasses clinked

clink noun