[clutch] vb [ME clucchen, fr. OE clyccan] vt (bef. 12c) 1: to grasp or hold with or as if with the hand or claws usu. strongly, tightly, or suddenly
2. obs: clench ~ vi 1: to seek to grasp and hold
2: to operate an automobile clutch syn see take
[2]clutch n (13c) 1 a: the claws or a hand in the act of grasping or seizing firmly b: an often cruel or unrelenting control, power, or possession "the fell ~ of circumstance --W. E. Henley" c: the act of grasping, holding, or restraining
2. a: a coupling used to connect and disconnect a driving and a driven part of a mechanism b: a lever (as a pedal) operating such a clutch
3: a tight or critical situation: pinch "come through in the ~"
4: clutch bag [3]clutch adj (1944) 1: made or done in a crucial situation "a ~ hit"
2: successful in a crucial situation "a ~ pitcher" [4]clutch n [alter. of dial. E cletch hatching, brood] (1721) 1: a nest of eggs or a brood of chicks
2: group, bunch