clew

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
clew /kluː/

▶noun

• 1 the lower or after corner of a sail.

• 2 (clews) Nautical the cords by which a hammock is suspended.

• 3 archaic a ball of thread.

• 4 archaic variant of clue.

▶verb (clew a sail up/down) draw a sail up or let it down by the clews when furling or unfurling.

– origin OE cliwen, cleowen (denoting a rounded mass, also a ball of thread), of Gmc origin; cf. clue.