Meanings
plural clack valves
- engineeringA valve; especially one hinged at one edge, which, when raised from its seat, falls with a clacking sound.
The feed water enters the back and cool end of the preheater and passes forward to the front and hot end, after which it enters the boiler through a clack valve.
1959 September, P. Ransome-Wallis, “The British Railways Class "9" 2-10-0s”, in Trains Illustrated, page 4201 more example
The connecting pipe between a locomotive injector and the boiler, through which the water is forced into the boiler against the steam pressure within, is provided with a "clack-valve," which allows the water to pass in the inward direction only and not the outward; this is housed in a "clack-box". No question of "advantages or disadvantages" attaches to the use of a clack-box; it is a necessary part of locomotive equipment.
1946 March and April, “The Why and The Wherefore: Clack-Boxes”, in Railway Magazine, page 129
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna simple valve with a hinge on one side; allows fluid to flow in only one direction
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
clack valve. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/clack%20valve
“clack valve.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/clack%20valve. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “clack valve,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/clack%20valve.
Source: clack valve on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.