as in to grab
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly
the brazen seagull snatched the french fry right from my hand
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in abduction
the unlawful or forcible carrying away of a person or animal
to the police chief, it didn't look like a snatch, but another case of a bride-to-be getting cold feet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of snatch
Jibin Joseph,
PC Magazine,
4 July 2026
Set in 1700s Norway, Madsi watches as her sister is snatched by the Northern Lights.
—
Taylor Grothe,
Parents,
4 July 2026
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
11 Feb. 2026
Basically the courts ruled on his actions as a leader and not on the legality of the snatch and grab operation itself.
—
CBS News,
4 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for snatch
Verb
Both teams are coming off nail-biting victories, with Canada scoring in injury time to snatch a 1-0 win from South Africa, and Morocco beating the Netherlands on penalties after trailing 0-1 in the game until the 90th minute.
—
Jibin Joseph,
PC Magazine,
4 July 2026
Set in 1700s Norway, Madsi watches as her sister is snatched by the Northern Lights.
—
Taylor Grothe,
Parents,
4 July 2026
Noun
The three compressions are Spanxsmooth Swim, which is light compression for barely there smoothing; Spanxshape Swim, medium compression for a little more tummy control and shaping, and Spanxsculpt Swim, strong compression that cinches and snatches.
—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
11 Feb. 2026
Basically the courts ruled on his actions as a leader and not on the legality of the snatch and grab operation itself.
—
CBS News,
4 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for snatch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snatch
Verb
-
Schieffelin, who played football last season because had used up his basketball eligibility, used his bulky frame to grab eight rebounds on an 11-point night.
-
Once the excitement had died down, the team gathered in a circle and a player went up to Haaland, grabbed the back of his neck and kissed his cheek.
Noun
-
The actual abduction was committed, according to the feds, by supermarket owner Abu Chowdhury — who’s accused of heading a kidnapping ring that also snatched and tortured two men who crossed his vengeful wife, Iffat Lubna.
-
In the past, it's been falsely linked with everything from hurricanes to floods, wildfires and alien abductions.
Verb
-
One villager had been bitten and is being treated in hospital, while a dozen locals had formed a team to catch the snakes, the Hongxing report said.
-
But the rally ended when Hernández’s liner up the middle landed in the glove of Rockies right-hander Jimmy Herget, who just entered the game, catching Kyle Tucker off first base for a double play.
Noun
-
The alleged rape was reported by The Athletic in May, though the identity of the player was not revealed at the time.
-
Mendes under investigation New Zealand police are investigating allegations of rape against Cape Verde captain Ryan Mendes, who has started all three of the team’s matches in the World Cup thus far.
Verb
-
The party has focused on driving down consumer costs, seizing on what polling shows is deep dissatisfaction about the economy and worries about affordability.
-
Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, who voted against the proposal in mid-June, voiced fears that the list of noncitizen voters would immediately be seized by federal immigration authorities.
Noun
-
They were filled with protesters — including outraged members of a teachers’ union and relatives of kidnapping victims — as well as fans skeptical of a team that, four years earlier, posted its worst World Cup performance since 1978.
-
Razia showed up at the scene not to aid in a kidnapping, but to confront her online tormentor, Sacks maintained.
Noun
-
While truck hijacking is not a new crime, the sophisticated cargo thefts now occurring combine traditional criminal activity with sophisticated technology to bring cargo thefts to new heights.
-
Advertisement Mission hijacking in the nonprofit space A similar overcrowding afflicts the pro-democracy space today.
Cite this Entry
“Snatch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snatch. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
