clutch

clutch
    n 1: the act of grasping; "he released his clasp on my arm"; "he
         has a strong grip for an old man"; "she kept a firm hold on
         the railing" [syn: {clasp}, {clench}, {clutch}, {clutches},
         {grasp}, {grip}, {hold}]
    2: a tense critical situation; "he is a good man in the clutch"
    3: a number of birds hatched at the same time
    4: a collection of things or persons to be handled together
       [syn: {batch}, {clutch}]
    5: a woman's strapless purse that is carried in the hand [syn:
       {clutch bag}, {clutch}]
    6: a pedal or lever that engages or disengages a rotating shaft
       and a driving mechanism; "he smoothely released the clutch
       with one foot and stepped on the gas with the other" [syn:
       {clutch}, {clutch pedal}]
    7: a coupling that connects or disconnects driving and driven
       parts of a driving mechanism; "this year's model has an
       improved clutch"
    v 1: take hold of; grab; "The sales clerk quickly seized the
         money on the counter"; "She clutched her purse"; "The
         mother seized her child by the arm"; "Birds of prey often
         seize small mammals" [syn: {seize}, {prehend}, {clutch}]
    2: hold firmly, usually with one's hands; "She clutched my arm
       when she got scared" [syn: {cling to}, {hold close}, {hold
       tight}, {clutch}]
    3: affect; "Fear seized the prisoners"; "The patient was seized
       with unbearable pains"; "He was seized with a dreadful
       disease" [syn: {seize}, {clutch}, {get hold of}]
    

Clutch \Clutch\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Clutched} (kl[u^]cht); p.
   pr. & vb. n. {Clutching}.] [OE. clucchen. See {Clutch}, n.]
   1. To seize, clasp, or grip with the hand, hands, or claws;
      -- often figuratively; as, to clutch power.
      [1913 Webster]

            A man may set the poles together in his head, and
            clutch the whole globe at one intellectual grasp.
                                                  --Collier.
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            Is this a dagger which I see before me . . . ?
            Come, let me clutch thee.             --Shak.
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   2. To close tightly; to clinch.
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            Not that I have the power to clutch my hand. --Shak.
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Clutch \Clutch\ (kl[u^]ch; 224), n. [OE. cloche, cloke, claw,
   Scot. clook, cleuck, also OE. cleche claw, clechen, cleken,
   to seize; cf. AS. gel[ae]ccan (where ge- is a prefix) to
   seize. Cf. {Latch} a catch.]
   1. A gripe or clinching with, or as with, the fingers or
      claws; seizure; grasp. "The clutch of poverty." --Cowper.
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            An expiring clutch at popularity.     --Carlyle.
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            But Age, with his stealing steps,
            Hath clawed me in his clutch.         --Shak.
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   2. pl. The hands, claws, or talons, in the act of grasping
      firmly; -- often figuratively, for power, rapacity, or
      cruelty; as, to fall into the clutches of an adversary.
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            I must have . . . little care of myself, if I ever
            more come near the clutches of such a giant. --Bp.
                                                  Stillingfleet.
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   3. (Mach.) A device which is used for coupling shafting,
      etc., so as to transmit motion, and which may be
      disengaged at pleasure.
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   4. Any device for gripping an object, as at the end of a
      chain or tackle.
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   5. (Zool.) The nest complement of eggs of a bird.
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   {Bayonet clutch} (Mach.), a clutch in which connection is
      made by means of bayonets attached to arms sliding on a
      feathered shaft. The bayonets slide through holes in a
      crosshead fastened on the shaft.
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Clutch \Clutch\, v. i.
   1. To reach (at something) as if to grasp; to catch or
      snatch; -- often followed by at.
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   2. to become too tense or frightened to perform properly;
      used sometimes with up; as, he clutched up on the exam.
      [PJC]
    

173 Moby Thesaurus words for "clutch":
      abduct, adhere to, amount, array, batch, bear hug, bind, bite,
      body, brood, budget, bunch, bundle, carry off, catch, cherish,
      chunk, clamp, clasp, cleave to, clench, climacteric, clinch, cling,
      clinging, clip, clump, cluster, clutches, complication,
      cone clutch, control, convergence of events, count, crisis,
      critical juncture, critical point, crossroads, crucial period,
      crunch, deal, death grip, disk clutch, dominance, domination, dose,
      embarrassing position, embarrassment, embrace, emergency, exigency,
      extremity, farrow, fine how-do-you-do, firm hold, foothold,
      footing, freeze to, friction clutch, fry, get, gob, grab, grapple,
      grasp, grip, gripe, group, hang on, hang on to, harbor, hatch,
      heap, hell to pay, high pressure, hinge, hobble, hold, hold fast,
      hold on, hold on to, hold tight, hot water, how-do-you-do, hug,
      hunk, imbroglio, imperativeness, influence, iron grip, jam, keep,
      keep hold of, kidnap, large amount, lay hold of, litter, lot,
      measure, mess, mix, morass, multiple-disk clutch, nab, nail, nest,
      never let go, nip, number, pack, parcel, parlous straits, part,
      pass, pickle, pinch, plate clutch, plight, portion, possession,
      power, predicament, press, pressure, pretty pass, pretty pickle,
      pretty predicament, purchase, push, quagmire, quantity, quicksand,
      ration, rim clutch, rub, scrape, seize, seizure, set, shanghai,
      slip friction clutch, slough, small amount, snag, snatch, spat,
      spawn, spot, squeeze, stew, stick to, sticky wicket, strait,
      straits, stress, sum, swamp, take, take hold of, tension, tenure,
      throttle, tight grip, tight spot, tight squeeze, tightrope,
      toehold, tricky spot, turn, turning point, unholy mess, urgency,
      young