clutch
29
3.9
- noun
- /klʌtʃ/
- Did you truly believe 500 years of Rome could so easily be delivered into the clutches of a mob?
- escape the clutches
- free from the clutches
- feel a painful clutch
Examples
-
...and leave him in the clutches of that woman, like a coward.
-
The little girl held her stuffed animal in a tight clutch as she walked through the dark room.
-
When I hear violin music, I feel a painful clutch at my heart.
Academic text (2011) -
Robert escaped their clutches and reported back to me.
-
She escaped your evil clutches.
-
You escaped the clutches of Gorlacon, but I must ask you to return with us into the lion's den.
-
The widow leapt back in fright and dropped her keys and purse in favor of an instinctive clutch at her heart.
Fiction book (1998) -
Could this passivity be the very thing keeping her from seeing her real situation and impeding her ability to actually escape the troll's clutches?
Academic text (2016) -
The leaders of Zartha flee their planet... ...in order to escape the clutches of the evil Kylothian, Serleena.
-
In a moment of panic, he felt a sudden clutch of fear in his chest.
Synonyms
140
1.0
A firm hold on something so it does not slip
132
8.2
A firm grip on something or a quick way to reach someone
72
1.0
A firm grip on something
59
1.1
A tight hold with the hand or arm on something
36
1.0
A quick action of taking something with your hand
12
4.2
A quick act of taking something with the hand
5
1.9
A tight hold with the hands or arms
2
2.0
Holding and pressing something firmly with your hand
2
2.7
To hold something firmly with the hand or another body part
2
4.0
A tight hold on something using hands or arms
1
4.1
A firm grip with the hands or arms that keeps something from moving
Compounds
- Specialized
1
3.9
A pedal in a car you press to disconnect the engine so you can change gears
- Specialized
1
7.5
A device that lets a machine part move when too much force would damage the machine
- Specialized
1
7.2
A device that uses rubbing between two surfaces to transfer power when changing gears
- Specialized
A machine part with cone-shaped surfaces that use rubbing to let power pass between two shafts
- Specialized
A clutch with cone shaped friction surfaces that connects two rotating shafts
- Specialized
A device in which flat disks press together to send power between moving parts
- Specialized
A device that lets moving parts slide when twisting force is too high to protect machines
How Tightly
Surface Forms
Etymology
Clutch as a noun meaning an act of grasping is the result of the verb idea 'to take a tight hold'. So a 'clutch' can mean a quick, strong grab or hold.