clapboard

noun

1
archaic : a size of board for making staves and wainscoting
2
: a narrow board usually thicker at one edge than the other used for siding
3
ˈklap-ˌbȯrd How to pronounce clapboard (audio) : a pair of hinged boards one of which has a slate with data identifying a piece of film and which are banged together in front of a motion-picture camera at the start of a take to facilitate editing

called also clapper board

clapboard transitive verb

Examples of clapboard in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Drawn on the outside of the envelope was a clapboard house with an open window. airmail.news, 1 Feb. 2025 Rogers’s rustic clapboard home from 1926, with its wide porch and open courtyard standing on a slight rise, was like a walk into a rural time warp; a hybrid of authentic country life and Los Angeles-style enhancement. Sam Lubell, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025 Notably, Lynch has rested his paper atop a clapboard, using the tools of film production to support his art. Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019 The tiny, ramshackle 19th-century clapboard house is light-years away from the nearby Vanderbilt Mansion, also open to the public. airmail.news, 27 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for clapboard 

Word History

Etymology

partial translation of Dutch klaphout stave wood

First Known Use

circa 1520, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of clapboard was circa 1520

Dictionary Entries Near clapboard

Cite this Entry

“Clapboard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clapboard. Accessed 12 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

clapboard

noun
clap·​board ˈklab-ərd How to pronounce clapboard (audio) ˈkla(p)-ˌbō(ə)rd How to pronounce clapboard (audio)
-ˌbȯ(ə)rd
: a narrow board thicker at one edge than at the other used to cover the sides of wooden buildings
clapboard verb

More from Merriam-Webster on clapboard

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