as in decides
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 clinches
John Towfighi, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
Dow clinches record high The Dow on Friday clinched its first closing record high of the year.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clinches
Verb
-
Because Gateway cousin track New Hampshire kicks off the next round, and another cousin track, Phoenix, decides the championship.—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Dexter decides to gather all the files on him and other killers to take with him.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Employee feedback determines the winners.—
Julia Sullivan,
USA Today,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Mental discipline determines long-term success more than market knowledge.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
When the smoke settles (quite literally) and people return, their bodies suffer the consequences, and our hospitals have the evidence.—
Lahari Vuppaladhadiam,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
-
That settles into a spicy suede with cardamom and benzoin, before warming into tonka bean, amber, and musk.—
Kimberly Wilson,
Essence,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
His seven receptions tied Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert for the most grabs in the contest.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Sep. 2025
-
The division lead, once again, is up for grabs.—
Mitch Bannon,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clinches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clinches. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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