# clou
## English
### Etymology

From French clou. Doublet of clove.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /kluː/
* Audio (Southern England):(file)
* Rhymes: -uː
* Homophones: clue, clew

### Noun

clou (plural clous)
* Something which holds the greatest attention; the chief point of interest.
** 1911, Max Beerbohm, Zuleika Dobson:But had he not refused her the wherewithal to remember him—the pearls she needed as the clou of her dear collection, the great relic among relics?
** 1994, Richard Abel, The Ciné Goes to Town: French Cinema, 1896-1914, page 70:Partly because they were constructed of multiple shot-scenes and recorded exclusively in LS, their elaborate decors acquired an even more privileged role — as tableaux and clous of spectacle — much in the manner of late nineteenth-century French stage productions […]

### Anagrams

* ULOC

## Catalan
### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈklɔw]

### Verb

clou
* inflection of cloure:
** third-person singular present indicative
** second-person singular imperative

## Dutch
### Etymology

Borrowed from French clou.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /klu/
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: clou
* Rhymes: -u

### Noun

clou m (plural clous)
* punch line

#### Synonyms

* pointe

## Finnish
### Etymology

Borrowed from French clou.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈkluː/, [ˈkluː]
* IPA: /ˈklou̯/, [ˈklo̞u̯]
* Rhymes: -uː

### Noun

clou
* highlight (high point of an occasion, press release etc.)

#### Declension

Possessive forms of clou (Kotus type 21/rosé, no gradation) :
first-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
clouni
clouni
accusative
nom.
clouni
clouni
gen.
clouni
genitive
clouni
clouideni clouitteni
partitive
cloutani
clouitani
inessive
cloussani
clouissani
elative
cloustani
clouistani
illative
clouhuni
clouihini
adessive
cloullani
clouillani
ablative
cloultani
clouiltani
allative
cloulleni
clouilleni
essive
clounani
clouinani
translative
cloukseni
clouikseni
abessive
clouttani
clouittani
instructive
comitative
—clouineni
second-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
clousi
clousi
accusative
nom.
clousi
clousi
gen.
clousi
genitive
clousi
clouidesi clouittesi
partitive
cloutasi
clouitasi
inessive
cloussasi
clouissasi
elative
cloustasi
clouistasi
illative
clouhusi
clouihisi
adessive
cloullasi
clouillasi
ablative
cloultasi
clouiltasi
allative
cloullesi
clouillesi
essive
clounasi
clouinasi
translative
clouksesi
clouiksesi
abessive
clouttasi
clouittasi
instructive
comitative
—clouinesi
first-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
cloumme
cloumme
accusative
nom.
cloumme
cloumme
gen.
cloumme
genitive
cloumme
clouidemme clouittemme
partitive
cloutamme
clouitamme
inessive
cloussamme
clouissamme
elative
cloustamme
clouistamme
illative
clouhumme
clouihimme
adessive
cloullamme
clouillamme
ablative
cloultamme
clouiltamme
allative
cloullemme
clouillemme
essive
clounamme
clouinamme
translative
clouksemme
clouiksemme
abessive
clouttamme
clouittamme
instructive
comitative
—clouinemme
second-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
clounne
clounne
accusative
nom.
clounne
clounne
gen.
clounne
genitive
clounne
clouidenne clouittenne
partitive
cloutanne
clouitanne
inessive
cloussanne
clouissanne
elative
cloustanne
clouistanne
illative
clouhunne
clouihinne
adessive
cloullanne
clouillanne
ablative
cloultanne
clouiltanne
allative
cloullenne
clouillenne
essive
clounanne
clouinanne
translative
clouksenne
clouiksenne
abessive
clouttanne
clouittanne
instructive
comitative
—clouinenne
third-person possessor
singular
plural
nominative
clounsa
clounsa
accusative
nom.
clounsa
clounsa
gen.
clounsa
genitive
clounsa
clouidensa clouittensa
partitive
cloutaan cloutansa
clouitaan clouitansa
inessive
cloussaan cloussansa
clouissaan clouissansa
elative
cloustaan cloustansa
clouistaan clouistansa
illative
clouhunsa
clouihinsa
adessive
cloullaan cloullansa
clouillaan clouillansa
ablative
cloultaan cloultansa
clouiltaan clouiltansa
allative
cloulleen cloullensa
clouilleen clouillensa
essive
clounaan clounansa
clouinaan clouinansa
translative
cloukseen clouksensa
clouikseen clouiksensa
abessive
clouttaan clouttansa
clouittaan clouittansa
instructive
comitative
—clouineen clouinensa :

#### Synonyms

* kohokohta

### Further reading

* “clou”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02

## French
### Etymology

Inherited from Old French clou, from Latin clāvus, from Proto-Italic *klāwos, from Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂u-.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /klu/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -u

### Noun

clou m (plural clous)
* nail (metal pin)
* clove (of garlic)
* (figurative) highlight, climax
* (usually in the plural, des clous) not likely, no way, you'll be so lucky

#### Derived terms

* clou de girofle
* clou d’ail
* clouer
* cloutier
* dans les clous
* enfoncer le clou
* maigre comme un clou

#### Descendants

* → Dutch: clou
* → English: clou
* → Finnish: clou
* → German: Clou
* → Italian: clou
* → Polish: clou

### Further reading

* “clou”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Italian
### Etymology

Borrowed from French clou. Doublet of chiavo.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈklu/$^{**}$
* Rhymes: -u

### Noun

clou m (invariable)
* (also relational) highlight (high point of an occasion)
    la mossa clou della partita ― the standout move of the match

### Anagrams

* culo, luco

## Manx
### Alternative forms

* clow

### Etymology

From Classical Gaelic clobh, clobhadh, from Middle Irish cloba, from Old Norse klof (“fissure”) and/or klofi (“fork in a river”), from the root of Old Norse *kleubaną (“to split, cleave”). Cognate with Irish tlú and Scottish Gaelic clobha.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /klau/

### Noun

clou m (genitive singular clou, plural cloughyn)
* tongs

### Mutation

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Manx. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

### References

* ↑ Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “clobae”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
* ↑ Marstrander, Carl J. S. (1915) Bidrag til det norske sprogs historie i Irland (in Norwegian), Kristiania: Jacob Dybwad, page 132
* ↑ Farren, Robert (3 December 2014) Old Norse loanwords in modern Irish: Semantic domains, polysemy and causes of semantic change (Bachelor thesis)‎, Lund University, page 46
* ↑ MacBain, Alexander, Mackay, Eneas (1911) “clobha”, in An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language‎, Stirling, →ISBN, page 89

## Middle English
### Noun

clou
* Alternative form of clough

## Polish
### Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French clou.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈklu/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -u
* Syllabification: clou

### Noun

clou n (indeclinable)
* clou (something which holds the greatest attention; the chief point of interest)

### Further reading

* clou in Polish dictionaries at PWN

## Romanian
### Etymology

Borrowed from French clou.

### Noun

clou n (plural clou-uri)
* highlight, climax of a show

#### Declension
## Welsh
### Pronunciation

* (North Wales) IPA: /klɔɨ̯/
* (South Wales) IPA: /klɔi̯/

### Adjective

clou (feminine singular clou, plural clou, equative cloued, comparative clouach, superlative clouaf)
* (South Wales) fast, quick

#### Synonyms

* cyflym

### Mutation

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.