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clanger

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clanger¹

  • /ˈklæŋ.ə(ɹ)/ UK

Rhymes with -æŋə(ɹ)

noun clangers

  1. also, figuratively Something that clangs; an alarm bell. The front and patio doors are bugged. When you open one a contact breaks and off goes the clanger.
  2. The clapper of a bell, anything that strikes a bell or other metal object to make a ringing sound. I dismounted and walked over to Pelleas. “You may remember me, my Lord,” I said. “You once made me a knife from a bell clanger. I am Morgan, Queen of Galloway.”
  3. Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, informal A very noticeable mistake; an attention-getting faux pas. In his speech, the best man got the bride's name wrong. What a clanger!

    Similar: blooper, blunder, boo-boo, faux pas, gaffe, pratfall

  4. Australia A mistake made by a player; counted in the game statistics in the category "errors including frees against". Geelong could not get their running game going and lapsed into clanger after clanger.
  5. An early hi-hat consisting of cymbals mounted on the rim of a bass drum and struck with an arm on the drum's pedal.
  6. Australia A cicada, Psaltoda claripennis, of New South Wales and Queensland, having an upper body of green and brown and clear wings with green veins.

clanger²

  • /ˈklæŋ.ə(ɹ)/ UK

Rhymes with -æŋə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

Shortening of Bedfordshire clanger.

noun clangers

  1. abbreviation Short for Bedfordshire clanger

Translations

Every language

noun noticeable mistake

Françaiscouac
DeutschSchnitzer, Fehltritt, Fauxpas, Fettnäpfchen

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Cite this
MLA

"clanger." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/clanger. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

clanger. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/clanger

Chicago

"clanger." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/clanger.

BibTeX
@misc{clanger_2026,
  title = {clanger},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/clanger},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}