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clutch
11 dictionary results for: clutch
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
clutch1 
[kluhch] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[kluhch] Pronunciation Key –verb (used with object)
–verb (used without object)
–noun
–adjective
| 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. |
| 4. | to try to seize or grasp (usually fol. by at): He clutched at the fleeing child. She clutched at the opportunity. |
| 5. | Slang. to become tense with fright; panic (sometimes fol. by up): I clutched up on the math exam. |
| 6. | to operate the clutch in a vehicle. |
| 7. | the hand, claw, etc., when grasping. |
| 8. | Usually, clutches. power of disposal or control; mastery: She fell into the clutches of the enemy. |
| 9. | the act of clutching; a snatch or grasp. |
| 10. | a tight grip or hold. |
| 11. | a device for gripping something. |
| 12. | Automotive, Machinery.
|
| 13. | Sports. an extremely important or crucial moment of a game: He was famous for his coolness in pitching in the clutch. |
| 14. | any critical position or situation; emergency: She kept complete control in the clutch. |
| 15. | 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. |
| 16. | done or accomplished in a critical situation: a clutch shot that won the basketball game. |
| 17. | dependable in crucial situations: a clutch player. |
| 18. | (of a coat) without fasteners; held closed in front by one's hand or arm. |
[Origin: 1175–1225; ME clucchen, var. of clicchen, OE clyccan to clench]
] —Related forms
clutch·ing·ly, adverb
clutchy, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
clutch2
[kluhch] Pronunciation Key
[kluhch] Pronunciation Key –noun
–verb (used with object)
| 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. |
| 4. | to hatch (chickens). |
[Origin: 1715–25; var. of cletch (now dial.); akin to Scots cleck to hatch < ON klekja to hatch]
]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| clutch 1
(klŭch) Pronunciation Key
v. clutched, clutch·ing, clutch·es v. tr.
v. intr.
n.
adj. Informal
[Middle English clucchen, from Old English clyccan.] |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| clutch 2
(klŭch) Pronunciation Key
n.
tr.v. clutched, clutch·ing, clutch·es To hatch (chicks). [Variant of dialectal cletch; akin to Middle English clekken, to hatch, from Old Norse klekja.] |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
clutch (v.)
clutch (v.)
O.E. clyccan "bring together, bend (the fingers), clench," infl. in meaning by M.E. cloke "a claw." Automotive engine part (n.) is 1814, with the "seizing" sense extended to "coupling for bringing working parts together." Originally of mill-works, first used of motor vehicles 1899.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
clutch (n.)
clutch (n.)
of chickens, eggs, 1721, from clekken "to hatch," probably from a Scand. source (cf. O.N. klekja "to hatch").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| clutch | |
noun | |
| 1. | the act of grasping; "he released his clasp on my arm"; "he has a strong grip for an old man"; "she kept a firm hold on the railing" [syn: clasp] |
| 2. | a tense critical situation; "he is a good man in the clutch" |
| 3. | a number of birds hatched at the same time |
| 4. | a collection of things or persons to be handled together [syn: batch] |
| 5. | a woman's strapless purse that is carried in the hand [syn: clutch bag] |
| 6. | a pedal or lever that engages or disengages a rotating shaft and a driving mechanism; "he smoothely released the clutch with one foot and stepped on the gas with the other" |
| 7. | a coupling that connects or disconnects driving and driven parts of a driving mechanism; "this year's model has an improved clutch" |
verb | |
| 1. | take hold of; grab; "The sales clerk quickly seized the money on the counter"; "She clutched her purse"; "The mother seized her child by the arm"; "Birds of prey often seize small mammals" [syn: seize] |
| 2. | hold firmly, usually with one's hands; "She clutched my arm when she got scared" [syn: cling to] |
| 3. | affect; "Fear seized the prisoners"; "The patient was seized with unbearable pains"; "He was seized with a dreadful disease" [syn: seize] |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Clutch
Clutch\ (kl[u^]ch; 224), n. [OE. cloche, cloke, claw, Scot. clook, cleuck, also OE. cleche claw, clechen, cleken, to seize; cf. AS. gel[ae]ccan (where ge- is a prefix) to seize. Cf. Latch a catch.]1. A gripe or clinching with, or as with, the fingers or claws; seizure; grasp. "The clutch of poverty." --Cowper. An expiring clutch at popularity. --Carlyle. But Age, with his stealing steps, Hath clawed me in his clutch. --Shak. 2. pl. The hands, claws, or talons, in the act of grasping firmly; -- often figuratively, for power, rapacity, or cruelty; as, to fall into the clutches of an adversary. I must have . . . little care of myself, if I ever more come near the clutches of such a giant. --Bp. Stillingfleet. 3. (Mach.) A device which is used for coupling shafting, etc., so as to transmit motion, and which may be disengaged at pleasure. 4. Any device for gripping an object, as at the end of a chain or tackle. 5. (Zo["o]l.) The nest complement of eggs of a bird. Bayonet clutch (Mach.), a clutch in which connection is made by means of bayonets attached to arms sliding on a feathered shaft. The bayonets slide through holes in a crosshead fastened on the shaft.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Clutch
Clutch\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Clutched; p. pr. & vb. n. Clutching.] [OE. clucchen. See Clutch, n.]1. To seize, clasp, or gripe with the hand, hands, or claws; -- often figuratively; as, to clutch power. A man may set the poles together in his head, and clutch the whole globe at one intellectual grasp. --Collier. Is this a dagger which I see before me . . . ? Come, let me clutch thee. --Shak. 2. To close tightly; to clinch. Not that I have the power to clutch my hand. --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Clutch
Clutch\, v. i. To reach (at something) as if to grasp; to catch or snatch; -- often followed by at. Clutching at the phantoms of the stock market. --Bankroft.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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