noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A device consisting of a board on which information about a film being recorded is noted, and a hinged piece which is brought down on the board with a clap at the start and end of each take of the film; it is used to synchronize picture and sound during editing.
2. 2
   photographic equipment used to synchronize sound and motion picture; boards held in front of a movie camera are banged together wordnet

Verb

1. 1
   To use a clapperboard, especially to clap it to start a film take.

Synonyms

All synonyms

boardclapboardclapboardclapstickmarkerslate

Example

More examples

"A clapperboard marks the beginning of each take."

Etymology

From clapper + board.

Related phrases

motion picture

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.