as in clenching
to have or keep in one's hands
he clutched the eggs carefully so he wouldn't drop them
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Recent Examples of clutching
Majchrzak took off his cap and appeared to pass it to the boy who was clutching a giant tennis ball with both hands.
—
Ben Morse, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
After Carpenter debuted the cover for her seventh studio album in June, some critiqued the image, which depicts the singer on her knees in a black dress as a man stands out-of-shot, clutching onto her hair.
—Mckinley Franklin, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2025
Others went for humor, featuring Dunkin’ Donuts collages, velociraptors clutching coffees and lobsters taking the spotlight.
—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The reverse features a landing eagle clutching an oak branch seemingly bound for a nest, the same image featured since 2021.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2025
Tim Iroegbunam was booked for his foul on Ampadu, which left him clutching his knee on the turf during Monday’s second half against Everton.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
Bonner was seen clutching at the back of his right leg at the end of a play to the sideline at Ford Field.
—David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Here, creator Julian Fellowes and executive producer Sonja Warfield explain what drove George to leave his wife and why Bertha’s actions toward Gladys earlier in the season shouldn’t leave 21st century viewers clutching their pearls.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 10 Aug. 2025
Butters in particular kills it, going from surfer chick to worrying mom clutching a glass of crisp white wine, frantically trying to save her engagement while stuck inside the body of a teenager.
—Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
Ben Morse, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
After Carpenter debuted the cover for her seventh studio album in June, some critiqued the image, which depicts the singer on her knees in a black dress as a man stands out-of-shot, clutching onto her hair.
—Mckinley Franklin, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2025
Others went for humor, featuring Dunkin’ Donuts collages, velociraptors clutching coffees and lobsters taking the spotlight.
—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The reverse features a landing eagle clutching an oak branch seemingly bound for a nest, the same image featured since 2021.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2025
Tim Iroegbunam was booked for his foul on Ampadu, which left him clutching his knee on the turf during Monday’s second half against Everton.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
Bonner was seen clutching at the back of his right leg at the end of a play to the sideline at Ford Field.
—David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Here, creator Julian Fellowes and executive producer Sonja Warfield explain what drove George to leave his wife and why Bertha’s actions toward Gladys earlier in the season shouldn’t leave 21st century viewers clutching their pearls.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 10 Aug. 2025
Butters in particular kills it, going from surfer chick to worrying mom clutching a glass of crisp white wine, frantically trying to save her engagement while stuck inside the body of a teenager.
—Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clutching
Verb
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The album’s pointed cover, showing a dolorous schoolboy gripping a phone while holding a basketball, hints at the weighty revelations contained therein.—
Will Dukes,
Rolling Stone,
2 Sep. 2025
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Alibaba’s progress in AI—where it is considered among the front-runners in Chinese artificial intelligence development—helped gloss over concerns about the three-way battle gripping online commerce.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In the photo, Elordi stood behind Romy, holding a glass of wine as Romy stuck her tongue out at the camera.—
Escher Walcott,
PEOPLE,
8 Sep. 2025
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The Packers controlled the line of scrimmage, holding the league’s top-scoring offense from 2024 to just 13 points.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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More than a month after his death, Ozzy Osbourne’s music has largely slipped away from the Billboard charts following the headline-grabbing news that one of rock’s founding fathers had passed away.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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SpaceX was also famously involved in funding and operating the headline-grabbing Polaris Dawn crewed commercial mission in September 2024.—
Eric Lagatta,
AZCentral.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clutching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clutching. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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