as in clutching
to have or keep in one's hands
clenched a tissue in his hands as he told his story of misfortune
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Recent Examples of clenching
Melvin Council stood amid a crowd of his Kansas teammates, clenching a black belt in his fist.
—
Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 25 Jan. 2026
Wole faced fixedly forward, both fists clenching the steering wheel.
—David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 25 Jan. 2026
Wole faced fixedly forward, both fists clenching the steering wheel.
—David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clenching
Verb
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The seasonal cake that had Costco fans across the nation clutching their pearls is back.—
Meghan Overdeep,
Southern Living,
4 Mar. 2026
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The mistake was dragging it out for years, stubbornly clutching a depreciating asset while better offers came and went.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Bachik shared a post to Instagram first showing Lopez in action onstage, gripping a microphone in a dazzling, very Vegas costume (rhinestones and fishnets and wind machines, oh my).—
Marci Robin,
Allure,
10 Mar. 2026
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On the other hand, his jumpstart of World War III has commenced, causing the stock market to tank, oil prices to go through the roof and a level of anxiety gripping the nation as never before.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The original features a man holding architectural drawings with the urban landscape in the background.—
Noelle Alviz-Gransee
March 6,
Kansas City Star,
6 Mar. 2026
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Tender’s assets Tender CEO Whitney Halberstram (Max Minghella) engineers the downfall of co-founder Jonah Atterbury (Kal Penn) and eventually leaves Henry holding the bag for the company’s fraud.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Wembanyama had back-to-back dunks in the second quarter, including grabbing his own miss and throwing it down for what became a three-point play on a foul by Javonte Green.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 Mar. 2026
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Brigham is also charged with assaulting a man by grabbing and twisting his genitals.—
Julia Coin,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Clenching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clenching. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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