- Feb, 16 2009 08:02pm
Impressive. Excuse my ignorance, but what is a clinker?
- Feb, 17 2009 02:02am
Sorry, Jill, perhaps another word is brick?
- Feb, 17 2009 08:02am
Ha ha, brick makes sense! I wonder if "clinker" is one of those funny British words?
- Feb, 17 2009 09:02am
Hi Jill, yes it is, there are several meanings, clinker was the residue left after burning coal in brickmaking furnaces and was often used in foundations. It can also refer to a method of making small boats. The Dutch made much smaller bricks than the English and are often referred to as dutch clinker. I hope this helps!.
- Feb, 17 2009 03:02pm
Jill, we also use the word in German... ;-)
- Feb, 17 2009 03:02pm
Hi all, I have done a bit of obscure research and am led to believe that in English, the slang term for a prison was clink and derived from the fact that they were often built cheaply from the brick kiln waste, clinker.
- Feb, 17 2009 04:02pm
Ah, Tony, now all is clear!! The slang term for prison is "clink" or "the clinker". Very interesting stuff....thanks for all the research!
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