twist / point
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twist / point
The special, often surprising or witty highlight of something, a story, or a plan. The 'Clou' (twist/point) is the decisive detail that makes everything interesting or understandable.
Der Clou an der ganzen Geschichte ist, dass der Detektiv am Ende selbst der Täter war.
The twist in the whole story is that the detective himself was the culprit in the end.
'Clou' comes from French and is pronounced similarly (roughly like 'Klu'). This origin explains the spelling, which is unusual for German.
Er hat eine Idee, aber er will den Clou noch nicht verraten.
He has an idea, but he doesn't want to reveal the twist yet.
A very typical construction is 'Der Clou an der Sache ist, dass ...' (The point/twist of the matter is that ...). Here, 'an' is always used with the dative.
Der Clou an seinem Plan war, dass niemand damit rechnete.
The point of his plan was that nobody expected it.
The word 'Clou' (twist/point) is often used in colloquial speech and informal texts. It often sounds a bit more clever or modern than 'Höhepunkt' (highlight) or 'Pointe' (punchline/point).
Und jetzt kommt der Clou: Das Auto kann sogar fliegen!
And now comes the twist: the car can even fly!
joke
'der Witz' and 'der Clou' both often have to do with something surprising or funny. 'der Witz' can be the whole short funny story, or the funny point in a situation. 'der Clou', on the other hand, is the special, decisive detail that makes something interesting. This detail can be funny, but it does not have to be. Learners may confuse the words because in a good joke, the 'Clou' is often exactly the punch line. As a guide: use 'Witz' for the funny story or the comic aspect; use 'Clou' for the special trick or highlight.
Der Clou an ihrem Plan ist, dass niemand zusätzlich Geld ausgeben muss.
The key point of her plan is that no one has to spend any extra money.
Nach dem Unterricht erzählte Paul einen Witz, und alle mussten lachen.
After class, Paul told a joke, and everyone had to laugh.