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See more synonyms for clutch on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to seize with or as with the hands or claws; snatch: The bird swooped down and clutched its prey with its claws.
  2. to grip or hold tightly or firmly: She clutched the child's hand as they crossed the street.
  3. Slang. to spellbind; grip a person's emotions, attention, or interest: Garbo movies really clutch me.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to try to seize or grasp (usually followed by at): He clutched at the fleeing child. She clutched at the opportunity.
  2. Slang. to become tense with fright; panic (sometimes followed by up): I clutched up on the math exam.
  3. to operate the clutch in a vehicle.
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  1. the hand, claw, etc., when grasping.
  2. Usually clutches. power of disposal or control; mastery: She fell into the clutches of the enemy.
  3. the act of clutching; a snatch or grasp.
  4. a tight grip or hold.
  5. a device for gripping something.
  6. Automotive, Machinery.
    1. a mechanism for readily engaging or disengaging a shaft with or from another shaft or rotating part.Compare coupling(def 2a).
    2. a control, as a pedal, for operating this mechanism.
  8. any critical position or situation; emergency: She kept complete control in the clutch.
  9. Also called clutch bag, clutch purse. a woman's small purse that can be carried in the hand and usually has no handle or strap.
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  1. done or accomplished in a critical situation: a clutch shot that won the basketball game.
  2. dependable in crucial situations: a clutch player.
  3. (of a coat) without fasteners; held closed in front by one's hand or arm.
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Origin of clutch1

1175–1225; Middle English clucchen, variant of clicchen, Old English clyccan to clench
Related formsclutch·ing·ly, adverbclutch·y, adjective


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Synonym study

1. See catch.


  1. a hatch of eggs; the number of eggs produced or incubated at one time.
  2. a brood of chickens.
  3. a number of similar individuals: a clutch of books; a whole clutch of dancers.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to hatch (chickens).
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Origin of clutch2

1715–25; variant of cletch (now dial.); akin to Scots cleck to hatch < Old Norse klekja to hatch

Related Words

grip, snatch, clench, grasp, fasten, clasp, nab, seize, harbor, clinch, keep, nail, hook, grapple, embrace, take, cherish, catch, snag, hold

Examples from the Web for clutching

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples


  • "I prythee that you will pardon me," said the knight, clutching his way along the bulwark.

    The White Company

    Arthur Conan Doyle

  • She was back again in the stuffy hotel room, clutching the sheet about her.


    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • "Let's git out, mister," cried Old Bill, clutching Mortimer's arm.


    W. A. Fraser

  • That clutching pain of grief was real, so real it blotted everything out.

    The Harbor

    Ernest Poole

British Dictionary definitions for clutching


  1. (tr) to seize with or as if with hands or claws
  2. (tr) to grasp or hold firmly
  3. (intr usually foll by at) to attempt to get hold or possession (of)
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  1. a device that enables two revolving shafts to be joined or disconnected as required, esp one that transmits the drive from the engine to the gearbox in a vehicle
  2. a device for holding fast
  3. a firm grasp
  4. a hand, claw, or talon in the act of clutchingin the clutches of a bear
  5. (often plural) power or controlin the clutches of the Mafia
  6. Also called: clutch bag a handbag without handles
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Word Origin

Old English clyccan; related to Old Frisian kletsie spear, Swedish klyka clasp, fork


  1. a hatch of eggs laid by a particular bird or laid in a single nest
  2. a brood of chickens
  3. informal a group, bunch, or cluster
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  1. (tr) to hatch (chickens)
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Word Origin

C17 (Northern English dialect) cletch, from Old Norse klekja to hatch

Word Origin and History for clutching




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"a brood, a nest" in reference to chickens, eggs, 1721, from clekken "to hatch" (c.1400). Said by OED to be apparently a southern England dialect word. Cf. batch/bake. Probably from a Scandinavian source (e.g. Old Norse klekja "to hatch"), perhaps of imitative origin (cf. cluck (v.)).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with clutching


see grasp (clutch) at straws.

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