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latches on

 - 2 dictionary results

latch

[lach]
–noun
1. a device for holding a door, gate, or the like, closed, consisting basically of a bar falling or sliding into a catch, groove, hole, etc.
–verb (used with object)
2. to close or fasten with a latch.
–verb (used without object)
3. to close tightly so that the latch is secured: The door won't latch.
4. latch on,
a. to grab or hold on, as to an object or idea, esp. tightly or tenaciously.
b. to include or add in; attach: If we latch the tax on, the bill will come to over $100.
5. latch onto, Informal.
a. to take possession of; obtain; get.
b. to acquire understanding of; comprehend.
c. to attach oneself to; join in with: The stray dog latched onto the children and wouldn't go home.

Origin:
bef. 950; 1930–35 for def. 5; ME lacchen, OE lǣccan to take hold of, catch, seize; akin to Gk lázesthai to take
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Word Origin & History

latch  (v.)
O.E. læccan "to grasp or seize," from P.Gmc. *lakkijanan. Not found in other Gmc. languages; probably from PIE *(s)lagw- "to seize" (see analemma). The noun is first recorded 1331, from the verb. Latchkey (1825) is a key to draw back the latch of a door; latchkey child first recorded 1944, Amer.Eng., in ref. to children who come home from school while both parents are at work.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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