clutch English · revision 15371
17 Oct 2026, 16:12 by bogdan “en10k b0433: sour … verify” current version
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+ Clutch, to grip, is a native English verb; clutch, a set of eggs, is a variant of a Scandinavian-derived dialect word.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈklʌt͡ʃ/^(Wiktionary)
+
+ {{homograph|1|grip}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 1025}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ Clutch, to grip, is [[inh|enm|clucchen|t=to bend, crook, clench]], a dialect variant of [[m|enm|clicchen]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) [[inh|ang|clyċċan|t=to bring together, bend the fingers, clench]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) from [[gem-pro|*klukjaną]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) cognate with [[sv|klyka|t=clamp, fork]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) The noun was influenced by Middle English [[m|enm|cloke|t=a claw]].^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ Old English clyccan, about 1025.^(Barnhart 1988) To grasp is from the early 14th century, and to seize with the claws from the late 14th.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ To hold tightly and close is from about 1600.^(Etymonline) The noun first meant a claw (cloche about 1300, from earlier cloke), then a grasping hand (1525) and a tight grasp (1784, in Cowper's ''The Task'');^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) ''clutches'', the hands as rapacious or cruel, is from the 1520s.^(Etymonline) A coupling device to engage and disengage machinery is from 1814, and the clutch of a motor vehicle from 1899.^(Barnhart 1988) The adjective, done in a tense or critical situation, as in a clutch hit, is from 1929 in Merriam-Webster.^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * c. 1025 – clyccan.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * c. 1300 – a claw (noun).^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1525 – a grasping hand.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1814 – a mechanical clutch.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1899 – the clutch of a car.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1929 – clutch, critical (adjective).^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Verb===
+ # To seize or grasp and hold tightly.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # To try to seize: ''clutch at straws''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ===Noun===
+ # A device for connecting and disconnecting two revolving shafts, especially the one between a car's engine and [[gearbox]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # A tight grip; in the plural, control or power: ''in the clutches of''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # A small handbag without a strap.^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ===Adjective===
+ # ''(US, informal)'' Done in, or good at handling, a tense or critical situation.^(AHD)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ {{homograph|2|set of eggs}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=borrowing|attested=1721}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ The set of eggs is a variant of northern dialect cletch (1691),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) which is [[inh|enm|clekken|t=to hatch]] (1402), as batch is to bake,^(Barnhart 1988) [[bor|non|klekja|t=to hatch]], perhaps related to [[m|non|klaka|t=to cackle]] (see [[cluck]]).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) Its form was associated with clutch, to grip.^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A nest of eggs or a brood of chickens: 1721.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ A group of people or things, a bunch, is a later extension.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1402 – clekken, to hatch.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1691 – cletch.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1721 – clutch.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # A set of eggs laid or [[incubate|alt=incubated]] at one time; a [[brood]] of chicks.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # A small group of people or things.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ===Verb===
+ # To hatch chicks.^(AHD)
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[cling]]
+ * [[clench]]
+ * [[cluck]]
+ * [[clinch]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}