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PlainSpell

clutch

/ˈklʌt͡ʃ/verb, noun, adjective

clutch is spelled C-L-U-T-C-H: 6 letters and one syllable. It appears 7.6 times per million words in written English, the 8,542nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, clutch means “To seize, as though with claws” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in clutch?

Letters6: C-L-U-T-C-H
Syllables1
In writing7.6 times per million words; the 8,542nd most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is clutch?

Clutch appears 7.6 times per million words in written English, the 8,542nd most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce clutch?

  • /ˈklʌt͡ʃ/
  • [ˈkʰl̥ʌt͡ʃ]

Clutch has one syllable.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-clutch.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of clutch

  • clutches present, singular, he/she/it, plural
  • clutching participle, present
  • clutched participle, past
  • cletch
  • clitch
  • cleach
  • cleak
  • cleek
  • cleik
  • click
  • clouch
  • more clutch comparative
  • most clutch superlative

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does clutch mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

verb

  1. 1

    To seize, as though with claws.

    to clutch power

  2. 2

    To grip or grasp tightly.

    She clutched her purse tightly and walked nervously into the building.

  3. 3

    To win despite being the only remaining player on one's team, against several opponents.

    For quotations using this term, see Citations:clutch.

  4. 4

    To unexpectedly or luckily succeed in a difficult activity.

  5. 5

    To hatch.

noun

  1. 1

    The claw of a predatory animal or bird.

  2. 2

    A grip, especially one seen as rapacious or evil.

  3. 3

    A device to interrupt power transmission, commonly used to separate the engine and gearbox in a car.

  4. 4

    The pedal in a car that disengages power and torque transmission from the engine (through the drivetrain) to the drive wheels.

  5. 5

    Any device for gripping an object, as at the end of a chain or tackle.

  6. 6

    A fastener that attaches to the back of a tack pin to secure an accessory to clothing. (See Clutch (pin fastener).)

  7. 7

    A small handbag or purse with no straps or handle.

  8. 8

    USAn important or critical situation.

    to come in clutch

  9. 9

    A brood of chickens or a sitting of bird, monotreme or reptile eggs; a sitting.

  10. 10

    A group or bunch (of people or things).

adjective

  1. 1

    CanadaUSPerforming or tending to perform well in difficult, high-pressure situations.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Clutch in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchagripper, serrer (to grip or grasp tightly), embrayage (device to interrupt power transmission), pédale d'embrayage (the pedal in a car that disengages power…), pochette (a small handbag or purse with no straps or…), nichée (brood of chickens)
Germanschnappen, packen, ergreifen (to grip or grasp tightly), Kupplung (device to interrupt power transmission), Kupplungspedal (the pedal in a car that disengages power…), Clutch (a small handbag or purse with no straps or…)
Portugueseagarrar (to grip or grasp tightly), embraiagem, embreagem (device to interrupt power transmission), bolsa carteira (a small handbag or purse with no straps or…)
Spanishaferrar (to grip or grasp tightly), cloch, cloche, clutch, croche, embrague (device to interrupt power transmission)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does clutch come from?

From Middle English clucchen, clicchen, cluchen, clechen, cleken, from Old English clyċċan (“to clutch, clench”), from Proto-West Germanic *klukkjan, from Proto-Germanic *klukjaną, from Proto-Germanic *klu- (“to ball up, conglomerate, amass”), from Proto-Indo-European *glew- (“to ball up; lump, mass”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after clutch