snatching
present participle ofsnatch
snatch
verb[T]
uk/snætʃ/us/snætʃ/snatchverb[T](TAKE QUICKLY)
C2
to takeholdof somethingsuddenlyandroughly:
He snatched thephotosout of myhandbefore I had achancetolookat them.
figurativeRunning thebestraceof hiscareer, Fletcher snatched(= only justwon)thegoldmedalfrom theCanadianchampion.
to take something or someone away byforce:
The six-year-oldgirlwas snatched from aplaygroundand herbodywasfoundtwodayslater.
She had herpursesnatched(=stolen)while she wasshopping.
Synonyms
abduct(TAKE A PERSON)
kidnap
to take something from someone
- takeHe offered her the microphone but she wouldn't take it.
- take hold ofGet ready to take hold of the baton as the next runner approaches.
- snatchHe snatched the letter out of my hands before I could read it.
- stealThe car was stolen from right outside our house.
- pinchA thief pinched his wallet and phone.
- seizeFederal agents seized two computers.
to do or get somethingquicklybecause you only have ashortamountoftime:
Maybe you'll beableto snatch acoupleofhours'sleepbeforedinner.
- Don't snatch, Isabel!
- He snatched thephonefrom myhand.
- She snatched theparcelandtoreinto it.
- Lara snatched thechocolatefrom myhandand put it to hermouth.
- Herhandbagwas snatched from her in thestreet.
Capturing or taking possession of things
- -grabbing
- apprehend
- apprehension
- arrogate
- at bayidiom
- cage
- capture
- catch
- clutch
- collar
- entangle
- get/lay/putyourhands onsomeoneidiom
- grab
- grabber
- repo
- repo man
- repossess
- seize
- sequester
- sequestration
Idiom
snatch victory (from the jaws of defeat)
Phrasal verb
snatch atsomething
Examplesofsnatching
snatching
In English, many past and present participles of verbs can be used as adjectives. Some of these examples may show the adjective use.
Snatchingthe beer is both a satire on the colonial propensity for taking other people's things by force and the officers' invariable reputation for drinking.
From theCambridge English Corpus
I think it is a most commendable example of commercial enterprise and of thesnatchingof some advantage from adversity.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Both we and the police already issue advice in various forms on precautions against street crime, including bagsnatching.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The efficacy of our underground means that it is safe, although there have been instances of handbagsnatching.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Petty crime such as pickpocketing and bagsnatchingdoes occur, but is extremely uncommon.
From
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.In addition, chain snatchings, a prevalent problem at the time, were decreased by seventy-five percent.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.There was cause for concern: bodysnatchingwas perceived to be a daily occurrence.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.Aspects of the plot proved very similar as well, such as thesnatchingbodies and replacing them with androids.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.They also paid a night watchman to guard his grave at night to deter grave robbers, as bodysnatchingwas common at that time.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.Foraging flights consist of shortsnatchingflights to foliage, branches, or into the air.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.The article suggests that the number of empty coffins that have been discovered proves beyond a doubt that at this time bodysnatchingwas frequent.
FromThis example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.