clout

Short definition from Wiktionary

Noun

1. 1
   Influence or effectiveness, especially political.
2. 2
   A blow with the hand.
3. 3
   A home run.
4. 4
   The center of the butt at which archers shoot; probably once a piece of white cloth or a nail head.
5. 5
   A swaddling cloth.
6. 6
   A cloth; a piece of cloth or leather; a patch; a rag.
7. 7
   An iron plate on an axletree or other wood to keep it from wearing; a washer.
8. 8
   A clout nail.
9. 9
   A piece; a fragment.

Verb

1. 1
   To hit (someone or something), especially with the fist.
2. 2
   To cover with cloth, leather, or other material; to bandage, patch, or mend with a clout.
3. 3
   To stud with nails, as a timber, or a boot sole.
4. 4
   To guard with an iron plate, as an axletree.
5. 5
   To join or patch clumsily.
6. 6
   Dated form of clot.