Home › Words › C › cloutingcloutingclouting means the act of giving a clout, or striking somebody.EtymologyFrom Middle English clouting; equivalent to clout + -ing.nounThe act of giving a clout, or striking somebody.e.g.“And many readers could provide me with tales of rulers across knuckles, slaps on bare legs, heads cracked together, and mighty ear-cloutings.” — 1969, The Educational Magazine, volume 26, page 163:A light plain cloth used for covering butter and farmer's baskets, and for dish and pudding cloths. The same term is often given to light cloths of the nursery diaper pattern.Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).Words closest in meaningBy meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.clouter 82% match — One who clouts or strikes. vs clouting →clout 80% match — Influence or effectiveness, especially political. vs clouting →clodding 73% match — The act of pelting somebody with clods. vs clouting →clouts 70% match — Clothes. vs clouting →beclout 68% match — To cover with a clout or cloth. vs clouting →cuffing 65% match — The act by which somebody is cuffed or struck. vs clouting →clonk 64% match — The abrupt sound of two hard objects coming into contact. vs clouting →clubbing 64% match — An instance of using a club. vs clouting →