clue

Definition

A strand of yarn etc. as used to guide one through a labyrinth; something which points the way, a guide.

Etymology

Variant of clew (“a ball of thread or yarn”), from Middle English clewe, from Old English clīewen (“ball”), from Proto-West Germanic *kliuwīn, from Proto-Germanic *kliuwīną, *klewô (“ball, bale”), from Proto-Indo-European *glew- (“to amass, conglomerate; clump, ball, bale”). Sense evolution with reference to the one which the mythical Theseus used to guide him out of the Minotaur's labyrinth. More at clew.

Example Sentences

• "she had even had in the past a small smug conviction that in the domestic labyrinth she always kept the clue."
• "Give me a clue because the question is too vague."
• "Black tracks on the magneto, a hairline crack in the flywheel casing, pitted points or a spitless exhaust — all are clues to potential conkouts"

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