snatch 1 of 2

snatch

2 of 2

noun

slang
as in kidnaping
the unlawful or forcible carrying away of a person or animal to the police chief, it didn't look like a snatch, but another case of a bride-to-be getting cold feet

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word snatch different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of snatch are clutch, grab, grasp, seize, and take. While all these words mean "to get hold of by or as if by catching up with the hand," snatch suggests more suddenness or quickness but less force than seize.

snatched a doughnut and ran

When is it sensible to use clutch instead of snatch?

The words clutch and snatch can be used in similar contexts, but clutch suggests avidity or anxiety in seizing or grasping and may imply less success in holding.

clutching her purse

How are the words grab and snatch related?

Grab implies more roughness or rudeness than snatch.

grabbed roughly by the arm

When would grasp be a good substitute for snatch?

The words grasp and snatch are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, grasp stresses a laying hold so as to have firmly in possession.

grasp the handle and pull

In what contexts can seize take the place of snatch?

While the synonyms seize and snatch are close in meaning, 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

When can take be used instead of snatch?

The meanings of take and snatch largely overlap; however, take is a general term applicable to any manner of getting something into one's possession or control.

take some salad from the bowl

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of snatch
Verb
For starters, a sting operation on which she’s been working tirelessly gets snatched away from her by the FBI. Andy Swift, TVLine, 9 Oct. 2025 Some dogs became overexcited before play even began, forcing owners to physically restrain them from snatching the toys, Mazzini said. N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 9 Oct. 2025
Noun
The text, sung by two sopranos, may well have been in Esperanto, as only snatches were decipherable. Alan G. Artner, chicagotribune.com, 4 June 2017 The beat is now peppy with drum and snatches of piano, a common Beatles rhythm. Nicholas Dawidoff, The Atlantic, 18 May 2017 See All Example Sentences for snatch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snatch
Verb
  • In grabbing McNeeley in the same class as Knueppel, Sion James and Ryan Kalkbrenner, Charlotte wanted to infuse its roster with youthful players boasting an old school mentality.
    Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 13 Oct. 2025
  • If her vibe is all about being cute yet comfy, grab the matching shorts for extra brownie points.
    Christa Joanna Lee, Glamour, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • On Monday, of course, the problem wasn’t Durbin getting caught stealing.
    Andy McCullough, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2025
  • One that frequently catches my attention is meaning, or purpose.
    Amy Lindgren, Twin Cities, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Worked at the family’s bakery before his abduction and was studying finance.
    Michael Collins, USA Today, 13 Oct. 2025
  • Yosef-Haim Ohana Yosef grew up in Kiryat Malachi in southern Israel, and traveled across the country for work before his abduction at the Nova Festival.
    Callum Sutherland, Time, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • According to Rolling Stone, Watkins was first arrested in September 2012 after police officers seized a large number of mobile phones and storage devices after conducting a drug search warrant at his home in Pontypridd, a town in Wales.
    Giana Levy, Variety, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Polymarket for its part has drawn in younger users with a better platform and by seizing upon the pandemic-era gambling trend especially prevalent in Gen Z men—not to mention with a little help from a newly friendly regulatory environment.
    Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Hamas later released footage of his kidnapping.
    Itay Stern, NPR, 13 Oct. 2025
  • These tendencies are most consequential in the kidnapping scene, a gnarled set piece that, in its planning and execution, seems to defy even dream logic.
    Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The rapes were discovered in 2020 when Dominique’s phones, cameras and electronic devices were seized after he was accused of having filmed up the skirts of three women in supermarkets.
    Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
  • On October 7, 2023, as a terrorist army invaded Israel intending to commit genocide against the Jewish people, many world leaders rightly condemned Hamas’ murder, rape, and slaughter of Israelis and foreign nationals.
    Ofir Akunis, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The hijacking of the sport and the community institutions that built it, by noxious forces using it for their own means.
    Nick Miller, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
  • This prevents session hijacking if the system keeps tokens cached.
    Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Snatch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snatch. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on snatch

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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