Etymology

clink

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Today it means: The sound of metal on metal, or glass on glass. Full definition →

Middle English clinken ← Old English *clincan ← Proto-Germanic *klinganą
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clink · noun, verb1

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*klinganą“to sound”
  2. Old English · inherited from*clincan
  3. Middle English · inherited fromclinken
  4. English todayclink

From Middle English clinken, from Old English *clincan (compare clynnan, clynian (“to sound; resound”)), from Proto-Germanic *klinganą (“to sound”). Cognates include Middle Dutch klinken and German klingen. Related to cling (sound) and clang. May be further related to call. Perhaps of onomatopoeic origin, as metal against metal.

clink · noun2

From the Clink prison in Southwark, London, itself presumably named after sound of doors being bolted or chains rattling.

Words from the same roots

Middle Englishclinken all →

clinker-built

Proto-Germanic*klinganą all →

cling

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.