as in decided
to make final, definite, or beyond dispute
the rain clinched the matter: we would have the party indoors
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Recent Examples of clinched
Murray clinched Denver’s first NBA Finals appearance with a defensive stop on LeBron James in the Lakers’ house.
—
Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2026
Venezuela reached its first WBC semis since 2009 and clinched a spot in the six-nation field for the 2028 Olympic baseball tournament, along with the United States and the Dominican Republic.
—ABC News, 15 Mar. 2026
Venezuela will face Italy in the semifinals but also clinched a spot in the six-nation field for the 2028 Olympic baseball tournament, along with the United States and the Dominican Republic.
—CBS News, 15 Mar. 2026
Cora reiterated as much in late September, two days before the Red Sox clinched their first playoff berth since 2021.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 15 Mar. 2026
Up next Texas A&M clinched the sixth seed in the SEC tournament, and will play on Thursday against the winner of Oklahoma and South Carolina.
—Dallas Morning News, 7 Mar. 2026
Miami, which won two early-season meetings against Charlotte by 27 and 16, clinched the season series and the tiebreaker with the Hornets.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2026
Realizing this may have been the final home game for several players, hundreds of fans among the 12,414 stayed in the arena well after Davis’ steal clinched the victory.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
Former Major League Baseball star Mark Teixeira clinched the Republican primary to succeed GOP Chip Roy in southwest Texas.
—Arkansas Online, 5 Mar. 2026
Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2026
Venezuela reached its first WBC semis since 2009 and clinched a spot in the six-nation field for the 2028 Olympic baseball tournament, along with the United States and the Dominican Republic.
—ABC News, 15 Mar. 2026
Venezuela will face Italy in the semifinals but also clinched a spot in the six-nation field for the 2028 Olympic baseball tournament, along with the United States and the Dominican Republic.
—CBS News, 15 Mar. 2026
Cora reiterated as much in late September, two days before the Red Sox clinched their first playoff berth since 2021.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 15 Mar. 2026
Up next Texas A&M clinched the sixth seed in the SEC tournament, and will play on Thursday against the winner of Oklahoma and South Carolina.
—Dallas Morning News, 7 Mar. 2026
Miami, which won two early-season meetings against Charlotte by 27 and 16, clinched the season series and the tiebreaker with the Hornets.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2026
Realizing this may have been the final home game for several players, hundreds of fans among the 12,414 stayed in the arena well after Davis’ steal clinched the victory.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
Former Major League Baseball star Mark Teixeira clinched the Republican primary to succeed GOP Chip Roy in southwest Texas.
—Arkansas Online, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clinched
Verb
-
Tobin plans to name something off the menu after Garrett, but hasn’t decided what and hopes to get more photos of him on the wall to commemorate his impact.—
Noelle Alviz-Gransee
March 15,
Kansas City Star,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Instead of tucking her poem away in a notebook, Santos decided to publish it in 2021.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Venezuela then took a brief 2-1 lead after opening the second inning with back-to-back doubles from Ezequiel Tovar and Gleyber Torres against Yamamoto, who settled in after that to hold Venezuela to just the two runs over four innings of work.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
15 Mar. 2026
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By the late eighteen-sixties, landowners had settled on sharecropping—a system that kept agricultural workers, many of them former slaves, in perpetual debt—to rebuild their economic dominance after the Civil War.—
Boyce Upholt,
New Yorker,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The space agency quickly determined that the 2022 strike trimmed the smaller asteroid’s orbit around its bigger companion.—
Marcia Dunn,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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The new story follows the trio as ambitious young entrepreneurs on the rise, determined to make their mark on the streets of New York City.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
9 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Clinched.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clinched. Accessed 16 Mar. 2026.
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