1
: an old or badly working piece of machinery
especially
: a dilapidated automobile
2
: someone or something notably unsuccessful
told a joke that was a real clunker
Examples of clunker in a Sentence
My first car was an old clunker that kept breaking down.
That joke was a real clunker.
The director's recent films have all been clunkers.
Recent Examples on the Web
There have been a few clunkers along the way, to be sure.
—
Nora Taylor, Robb Report, 20 May 2024
His one clunker, home or road, came on April 27 in Mexico City when the Astros ripped him for six runs on six hits (including two homers) in Colorado’s 14-4 loss.
—Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 13 May 2024
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo picked bad nights for clunkers.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 11 Apr. 2024
Tennessee: The Vols followed their worst clunker of the season — scoring just 59 points in a loss at home against South Carolina — with impressive efforts against Kentucky and LSU.
—Al Lesar, USA TODAY, 8 Feb. 2024
Sure, there were clunkers, but the Packers won several big games before national audiences this season.
—Christopher Kuhagen, Journal Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2024
And sure, Purdy’s had some clunkers and the offense has sputtered periodically, notably when Samuel isn’t on the field.
—Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2024
But the company had trouble at the start, gaining an early reputation for building clunkers.
—Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024
He’s pumped up his field-goal percentage from 48.9 percent to 57.4 and an 0-for-9 clunker from 3 last season now sits at 39.1 percent.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2024
Nora Taylor, Robb Report, 20 May 2024
His one clunker, home or road, came on April 27 in Mexico City when the Astros ripped him for six runs on six hits (including two homers) in Colorado’s 14-4 loss.
—Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 13 May 2024
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo picked bad nights for clunkers.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 11 Apr. 2024
Tennessee: The Vols followed their worst clunker of the season — scoring just 59 points in a loss at home against South Carolina — with impressive efforts against Kentucky and LSU.
—Al Lesar, USA TODAY, 8 Feb. 2024
Sure, there were clunkers, but the Packers won several big games before national audiences this season.
—Christopher Kuhagen, Journal Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2024
And sure, Purdy’s had some clunkers and the offense has sputtered periodically, notably when Samuel isn’t on the field.
—Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2024
But the company had trouble at the start, gaining an early reputation for building clunkers.
—Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024
He’s pumped up his field-goal percentage from 48.9 percent to 57.4 and an 0-for-9 clunker from 3 last season now sits at 39.1 percent.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clunker.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near clunker
Cite this Entry
“Clunker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clunker. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share