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clench

verb, noun — 9 senses

clench

verb

/klɛnt͡ʃ/

Etymology From Middle English clenchen, from Old English clenċan (“to clinch; hold fast”), a variant of Old English clenġan (“to adhere; remain”), from Proto-Germanic *klangijaną, causative of *klinganą (“to stick; adhere”). Related to cling.

1

Ambitransitive To grip or hold fast.

  • I clenched the rope in my teeth.
  • Clinch the pointed spear.1697, Virgil, “(please specify the book number)”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
2

Ambitransitive To close tightly.

  • He clenched his fist in anger.
  • [She] flung herself / Down on the great King's couch, and writhed upon it, / And clench'd her fingers till they bit the palm, / And shriek'd out 'traitor' to the unhearing wall, […]1859, Alfred Tennyson, “Elaine”, in Idylls of the King, London: Edward Moxon & Co., […], →OCLC, page 179:
3

Alternative, Ambitransitive Alternative form of clinch (“bend and hammer a nail”).

4

Ambitransitive, Dated Dated form of clinch (“make certain, finalize”).

  • to clench an argument
  • Captain Treverton, it is hardly necessary to say, was not long in clenching the bargain on his side. The estate changed hands; […]1875, Wilkie Collins, The Dead Secret (page 45)
Synonyms
clasp, clutch, grip
Antonyms
unclench
Derived terms
buttock-clenching, clenchable, clench-built, clencher, clench one's fists, clenchpoop, clencht, clinch, reclench

clench

noun

Etymology From Middle English clenchen, from Old English clenċan (“to clinch; hold fast”), a variant of Old English clenġan (“to adhere; remain”), from Proto-Germanic *klangijaną, causative of *klinganą (“to stick; adhere”). Related to cling.

1

Ambitransitive A tight grip.

2

Alternative, Ambitransitive Alternative form of clinch (“the act of bending and hammering the point of a nail so it cannot be removed”).

3

Engineering, Natural sciences, Physical sciences Ambitransitive A seal that is applied to formed thin-wall bushings.

4

Ambitransitive A local chapter of the Church of the SubGenius parody religion.

  • And perhaps most innovative of all, Drummond and Stang pushed for a policy of clench autonomy […]1989, Ted Schultz, The Fringes of Reason, page 210:
  • Every SubGenius clench is required to have a member who does not believe […]2003, Peter Knight, Conspiracy Theories in American History: An Encyclopedia, page 170:
1 more example
  • Originality is encouraged, and some clenches have devised their own distinctive organizational names […]2012, George D. Chryssides, Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements, page 95:
5

Ambitransitive, Obsolete A pun.

  • Here one poor word an hundred clenches makes1728, [Alexander Pope], “Book the First”, in The Dunciad. An Heroic Poem. […], Dublin; London: […] A. Dodd, →OCLC, page 1:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.

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