latch on
phrasal verb
latched on; latching on; latches on
British, informal
: to begin to understand something
What he was saying was complicated, so it took me a while to latch on.
Examples of latch on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
By opting out after a strong spring training, Smith might have a better chance of latching on to the 40-man roster of another team before the 2025 season officially begins.
—
Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 21 Mar. 2025
Yoon’s conservative supporters have latched on to his arguments as well as his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud, strongly echoing the dynamic between President Donald Trump and supporters who say he has been wrongly persecuted by a corrupt judicial system.
—Beomsu Jo, NBC News, 8 Mar. 2025
The second-year Texans quarterback latched on to the ball, rolled to his right and coolly found receiver Xavier Hutchinson alone in the middle of the field for a 34-yard gain.
—Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
The campaign consultants hoping to latch on to a primary campaign for Congress later this year can move on.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for latch on
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 21 Mar. 2025
Yoon’s conservative supporters have latched on to his arguments as well as his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud, strongly echoing the dynamic between President Donald Trump and supporters who say he has been wrongly persecuted by a corrupt judicial system.
—Beomsu Jo, NBC News, 8 Mar. 2025
The second-year Texans quarterback latched on to the ball, rolled to his right and coolly found receiver Xavier Hutchinson alone in the middle of the field for a 34-yard gain.
—Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
The campaign consultants hoping to latch on to a primary campaign for Congress later this year can move on.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for latch on
Cite this Entry
“Latch on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/latch%20on. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share