snatchverb [ T ]
uk/snætʃ/us/snætʃ/snatch verb [ T ] (TAKE QUICKLY)
C2 to take hold of something suddenly and roughly:
He snatched the photos out of my hand before I had a chance to look at them.
figurative Running the best race of his career, Fletcher snatched (= only just won) the gold medal from the Canadian champion.
to take something or someone away by force:
The six-year-old girl was snatched from a playground and her body was found two days later.
She had her purse snatched (= stolen) while she was shopping.
to do or get something quickly because you only have a short amount of time:
Maybe you'll be able to snatch a couple of hours' sleep before dinner.
More examples
- Don't snatch, Isabel!
- He snatched the phone from my hand.
- She snatched the parcel and tore into it.
- Lara snatched the chocolate from my hand and put it to her mouth.
- Her handbag was snatched from her in the street.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Capturing or taking possession of things
- -grabbing
- apprehend
- apprehension
- arrogate
- at bay idiom
- bag
- cage
- capture
- catch
- collar
- corner
- entangle
- get your claws into sb idiom
- get/lay/put your hands on sb idiom
- grab
- repo man
- seize
- sequester
- snag
- snatch at sth
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Idiom(s)
snatch victory (from the jaws of defeat)
Phrasal verb(s)
snatch at sth
snatchnoun [ C ]
uk/snætʃ/us/snætʃ/snatch noun [ C ] (TAKE QUICKLY)
the action of trying to take something quickly and forcefully:
I felt someone behind me make a snatch at my bag.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Capturing or taking possession of things
- -grabbing
- apprehend
- apprehension
- arrogate
- at bay idiom
- bag
- cage
- capture
- catch
- collar
- corner
- entangle
- get your claws into sb idiom
- get/lay/put your hands on sb idiom
- grab
- repo man
- seize
- sequester
- snag
- snatch at sth
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snatch noun [ C ] (SHORT PART)
a short part of something:
I tried to hear what they were saying, but I only managed to catch a few snatches of conversation.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Words meaning parts of things
- back end
- bifurcation
- body
- branch
- cartridge
- chunk
- compartment
- element
- item
- module
- neck
- piece
- section
- segment
- segmental
- side
- sub
- subsection
- third
- tranche
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snatch noun [ C ] (SEX ORGAN)
offensive for the vagina