A general name given by the mobility to Dutch seamen, being a corruption of CLAUS, the abbreviation of Nicholas, a name very common among the men of that nation.
·noun The game of ninepins. II. Closh ·noun A disease in the feet of cattle; laminitis. ...
Webster's Dictionary of the English Language
[from the Danish klos]. A sobriquet for east-country seamen. ...
The Sailor's Word-Book