clutch

verb

ˈkləch 

clutched; clutching; clutches

transitive verb

1

: to grasp or hold with or as if with the hand or claws usually strongly, tightly, or suddenly

He clutched his chest and appeared to be in pain.

2

obsolete : clench

intransitive verb

1

: to seek to grasp and hold

clutched at her hand

2

: to operate an automobile clutch (see clutch entry 2 sense 2a)

Synonyms of clutch

• grip
• clench
• hold

Choose the Right Synonym for clutch

take, seize, grasp, clutch, snatch, grab mean to get hold of by or as if by catching up with the hand.

take is a general term applicable to any manner of getting something into one's possession or control.

take some salad from the bowl

seize implies a sudden and forcible movement in getting hold of something tangible or an apprehending of something fleeting or elusive when intangible.

seized the suspect

grasp stresses a laying hold so as to have firmly in possession.

grasp the handle and pull

clutch suggests avidity or anxiety in seizing or grasping and may imply less success in holding.

clutching her purse

snatch suggests more suddenness or quickness but less force than seize.

snatched a doughnut and ran

grab implies more roughness or rudeness than snatch.

grabbed roughly by the arm

Examples of clutch in a Sentence

I had to clutch the counter to keep from falling.

The child clutched her mother's hand firmly.

He had a book clutched in his hand.

Recent Examples on the Web

The 34-year-old Eriksen clutched his chest with both hands in an off-the-ball action before dropping to the ground in the 65th minute of Denmark’s international friendly against Ukraine in Odense, Denmark, on Sunday. —ABC News, 8 June 2026

Bounding out of the room, Shaboozey returns clutching his Grammy trophy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. —Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 8 June 2026

Eriksen, who five years ago suffered a cardiac arrest on the field at Euro 2020, was seen clutching his chest before falling to the floor during the Denmark’s international friendly. —Ben Church, CNN Money, 8 June 2026

Carter Jensen clutched a pack of baseball cards in his hand, carefully picking up the top one, looking at it, placing it aside and then repeating the process. —Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 8 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English clucchen, from Old English clyccan

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing clutch

• clutch bag
• double-clutch
• friction clutch
• in the clutch

Rhymes for clutch

• crutch
• cutch
• dutch
• hutch
• much
• mutch
• such
• touch
• insomuch
• overmuch
• nonesuch
• retouch

Kids Definition

clutch

1 of 4 verb

ˈkləch 

1

: to grip with or as if with the hand or claws : grasp

2

: to make a grab

clutch at a swinging rope

clutch

2 of 4 noun

1

a

: the claws or a hand in the act of grasping

b

: an often cruel or stern power or control

had the enemy in their clutches

2

: a device for gripping an object

3

a

: a coupling used to connect and disconnect a driving and a driven part in machinery

b

: a lever or pedal operating a clutch

4

: a tight or critical situation : pinch

he came through in the clutch

clutch

3 of 4 adjective

: done or doing well in a tight or critical situation

a clutch play

a clutch player

clutch

4 of 4 noun

: a nest or batch of eggs or a brood of chicks

Etymology

Old English clyccan "to grasp, hold"

altered form of dialect word cletch "a hatching, brood"