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clap out

B2 informal separable both
In simple words

To clap while someone is leaving, to say goodbye with applause; or to describe something totally broken and old.

Literal meaning: To clap (strike hands together) in a direction outward, as someone exits.

Meanings

1 B2 idiomatic informal

To applaud someone as they leave a place for the last time, as a mark of respect or farewell.

"The whole school lined the hallway to clap out the retiring headmistress on her final day."

Grammar: separable
2 B2 idiomatic informal

(clapped-out) Worn out, exhausted, or no longer functioning properly; used of machines, vehicles, or people.

"He showed up to the interview in a clapped-out old van held together with tape."

"It was a clapped-out old banger that should have been scrapped years ago."

— General British English journalistic usage; widely attested in The Guardian and similar publications.
Usage notes

As a farewell ritual, 'clap out' is common in schools and workplaces (especially British and Australian English). As an adjective 'clapped-out' (hyphenated) means old, broken, and useless — very common in British English for old cars or machines.

Commonly used with

retiree teacher colleague soldier car engine

Forms

Base
clap out
I/you/we/they
3rd person
claps out
he/she/it
Past simple
claped out
yesterday
Past participle
claped out
have + pp
-ing form
claping out
continuous

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