slang
Clanker
KLANK-er
Definition
An insult for robots and AI, borrowed from Star Wars and revived in 2025 as kids' go-to jibe for anything artificial — AI chatbots, in-game NPCs, or a person acting stiff and robotic. Usually playful ('stop being a clanker').
Example Usage
“The AI helper in that game is such a clanker, it never understands me.”
Note for Parents
Low concern — it's modern slang for 'robot', used jokingly. Occasionally aimed at a person to mean they're being unoriginal or AI-like, but it's mild teasing rather than a serious slur.