Plural of clout; pieces of cloth or metal, or instances of influence and power.
From Old English 'clūt,' meaning a patch of cloth or a lump of earth. The word evolved to mean a blow, then a piece of armor, then figuratively, power or influence.
The phrase 'having clout' comes from an old sense of the word meaning 'influence'—it probably started because physically powerful people could hit harder (deliver a clout) and thus had more power!
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