Clog Named a Wooden Shoe and a Blockage
To clog is to block something. The noun once meant a heavy block of wood, and then a wooden shoe.
To clog is to block or obstruct; a clog is a shoe with a thick wooden sole. The oldest sense is a heavy block of wood tied to an animal's leg to stop it wandering, which explains both branches: the shoe is a wooden block worn on the foot, and to clog something is to weigh it down until it stops. Clog dancing grew up in northern English mills, where the wooden soles made a percussive beat on stone floors.
- To block. *Clogged drains.*
- A wooden-soled shoe. *Wooden clogs.*
- A hobble (archaic). *A clog on a beast.*
- Clog dancing. *Clog dancing.*
- Middle English — *clogge*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | clog | Clogging. |
| Noun | clog | A clog. |
| Plural | clogs | Clogs. |
| Adjective | clogged | Clogged. |
| Compound | clog dance | A clog dance. |
- Leaves clogged the gutter.Blockage.
- She wore leather clogs.Footwear.
- Clog dancing began in the mills.History.
Wooden footwear
- Clog — a wooden sole, often with a leather upper
- Sabot — the French all-wood shoe, source of *sabotage*
- Klomp — the Dutch version, still worn for farm work
- Geta — the raised Japanese wooden sandal
- All share one purpose: keeping the foot above wet ground
Middle English *clogge*, a block of wood, of unknown origin.
How did clog come to mean both a shoe and a blockage?
Both come from the older sense of a wooden block: one worn on the foot, one tied on to stop an animal moving.
Where did clog dancing begin?
In the mills of northern England, where wooden soles beat a rhythm on stone floors.