Where does “clout” come from?

Clout comes from Middle English clout, Old English clūt, and Proto-Germanic klūtaz, all traced to the Proto-Indo-European root gel- meaning to ball up or form into a lump.

clout (English): Influence or effectiveness, especially political;...

Definitions

  1. Influence or effectiveness, especially political;...

Ancestry of “clout”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishcloutA piece of fabric; a shred; A piece of fabric;...
2Old Englishclūta small piece of cloth or leather, rag, patch
3Proto-West Germanicklūt—
4Proto-Germanicklūtazlump, clod; boulder, rock; hill
5Proto-Indo-Europeangelewdos—
6Indo-European*gel-—

Words derived from “clout”

Every word from Indo-European *gel- →