clutch

1. (by extension) A grip, especially one seen as rapacious or evil.Examples: "I muſt have great leiſure, and little care of my ſelf, if I ever more come near the Clutches of ſuch a Giant, who ſeems to write with a Beetle inſtead of a Pen; […]"; "Should when he pleaſes, and on whom he will / Wage war, with any or with no pretence / Of provocation, giv'n or wrong ſuſtained, / And force the beggarly laſt doit, by means / That his own humour dictates, from the clutch / Of poverty, that thus he may procure / His thouſands weary of penurious life / A ſplendid opportunity to die?"; "The more cunning heads thought it was all an expiring clutch at popularity, on the part of a Minister, whom domestic embarrassments, court intrigues, old age, and dropsy soon afterward finally drove from the helm."broadly

2. (US) An important or critical situation.Examples: "to come in clutch"; "And when it came to the clutch, Johnny Mize, who was washed up five years ago, would crack out a pinch double, or Mickey Mantle, who is not yet ready for the big leagues, would slam out a home run."; "He is the player who has come through so often in the clutch during his days at Camarillo."US

1. (US, Canada) Performing or tending to perform well in difficult, high-pressure situations.Examples: "NC State made the most of their overtime possession scoring a touchdown on some very clutch plays."; "I start with his most obvious characteristic: he was clutch. He is Mr. Clutch. In the last chapter I mentioned that Bernie Williams was clutch, which was a valid assessment, but nobody on the Yankees was as clutch as Jeter was."; "It doesn't get more clutch than that!"CanadaUS

1. (transitive) To hatch.collectivetransitive