# click

Pronunciation: say "KLIK" /klɪk/

## Verb

1. To press and release a button on a computer mouse, or tap a link or icon, to select something on a screen, open it, or move through a website or app.
   - Simple: To press a mouse button or tap a screen to choose something, open a link, or move around a website.
   - _Click the icon to launch the program._
   - _He clicked the left button to confirm the order._
4. To make a short, sharp sound, or a series of light, regular sounds like a ticking clock.
   - Simple: To make a short, sharp sound, or a series of light sounds like a ticking clock.
   - _Her heels clicked against the marble floor._
   - _Mechanical keyboards click with every keystroke._
6. To cause something to make a click, especially by operating a switch, latch or similar part.
   - Simple: To work a switch or part so it makes a short, sharp sound.
   - _She clicked the lid shut with one finger._
   - _Click the latch firmly to lock the gate._
7. To get along well, especially right from the start.
   - Simple: To like each other and get along well, often right away.
   - _They clicked the moment they met at the conference._
   - _Some colleagues just click, while others never warm to each other._
8. To become understandable all at once.
   - Simple: To suddenly become clear or easy to understand.
   - _After hours of practice, the technique suddenly clicked._
   - _Concepts click faster when you connect them to real life._
11. To snap one's fingers, making a sharp sound. *(British)*
   - Simple: To snap your fingers to make a sharp sound.
   - _The teacher clicked her fingers twice, and the whole class turned to look at her._
   - _Many people think it is rude to click your fingers at a waiter to get his attention._
13. To take a photograph using a camera. *(India)*
   - Simple: To take a photo with a camera.
   - _He clicked several shots of the old building from across the street._
   - _Tourists click photos of the monument all day long._
15. To succeed or become popular, especially suddenly or for the first time, as a performer, film, or product does. *(India)*
   - Simple: To become successful or popular, especially suddenly, like a film or singer.
   - _The band clicked overnight when their song hit the radio._
   - _New writers sometimes click with a single lucky break._

## Noun

2. An act of pressing a mouse button or tapping a link or icon, especially one counted when people open online content or an ad.
   - Simple: One press of a mouse button or tap on a link, often counted to see how many people open something online.
   - _The advertiser pays fifty cents for every click, so the team tracks the numbers closely._
   - _The app counts every click a visitor makes on the page._
3. A short, sharp, fairly high sound, like the one made when a switch, latch, or lock operates, or the act of making this sound.
   - Simple: A short, sharp sound, like the one a switch or lock makes when it moves.
   - _The lock closed with a satisfying click._
   - _A faint click told her the latch had finally caught._
5. A speech sound produced by drawing air inward, formed by combining a velar or uvular closure with another closure in the mouth.
   - Simple: A speech sound made by pulling air inward with the tongue, used in some southern African languages.
   - _The name Xhosa itself begins with a click, which many English speakers find hard to pronounce._
   - _Linguists transcribe each click with its own distinct symbol._
10. A short, sharp vocal sound produced by a dolphin.
   - Simple: A short, sharp sound that a dolphin makes.
   - _The trainer recognized each click the dolphin made._
   - _A sudden click came from the pod swimming nearby._
12. The act of snapping one's fingers, producing a sharp sound. *(British)*
   - Simple: The act of snapping your fingers to make a sharp sound.
   - _A single click of her fingers brought the noisy room to silence._
   - _He summoned the waiter with a casual click._
14. Alternative spelling of klick, meaning a kilometer or kilometers per hour, especially in military slang. — Alternative spelling of klick (“kilometers; kilometers per hour”).
   - Simple: Another spelling of klick, meaning a kilometer, or kilometers per hour.
   - _The soldiers reported that the target was twelve clicks out._
   - _After one more click the road finally turned to pavement._

## Interjection

9. Represents the brief, sharp sound made by a switch, button, or similar mechanism.
   - Simple: Used to show the short, sharp sound a switch or button makes.
   - _Click! The handcuffs snapped shut around his wrist._
   - _She pressed the switch. Click. The room went dark._

## Noun

16. A knock or blow, such as a punch or strike. *(obsolete, UK)*
   - Simple: A knock or a hit, such as a punch.

## Verb

17. To snatch: to seize or grab something suddenly. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To grab something quickly.

## Other meanings

- (noun) A small catch, such as the pawl of a ratchet, that drops between the teeth of a wheel to stop it running backward.
- (noun) A contortion of a limb at the joint, performed as a move in vogue dancing.
- (noun) The latch of a door: the catch that holds it closed.
- (noun) A type of throw, used in wrestling and similar grappling sports.
- (noun) A pawl or similar catch used in a mechanism to hold a moving part in place.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–13, 15–16** — First recorded in the 1500s, this word imitates the 'click' sound, much like Middle Dutch clicken, Danish klikke, and Swedish klicka, all meaning 'to click.'
**Meaning 17** — Possibly goes back to Old English *clēċan or *clǣċan, byforms of clyċċan ('to clutch'). Middle English had cleken, which was a variant of clechen ('to grab').

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/click (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).