What does "clinch" mean?
Clinch: To set closely together; to close tightly; as, to clinch the teeth or the first. Swift.
Additional senses
- 2.The bend or turn over the point of (something that has been driven trough an object), so that it will hold fast; as, to clinch a nail.
- 3.To make conclusive; to confirm; to establish; as, to clinch an argument. South.
- 4.To hold fast; to grasp something firmly; to seize or grasp one another.
- 5.The act or process of holding fast; that which serves to hold fast; a grip; a grasp; a clamp; a holdfast; as, to get a good clinch of an antagonist, or of a weapon; to secure anything by a clinch.
- 6.A pun. Pope.
- 7.(Naut.) A hitch or bend by which a rope is made fast to the ring of an anchor, or the breeching of a ship's gun to the ringbolts.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00