Link Centre Dictionary

latch

UK/læt͡ʃ/ US/ˈlætʃ/ fairly common
verb (1) noun (2)

verb

1.

fasten with a latch

  • “latch the door”

noun

1.

spring-loaded doorlock that can only be opened from the outside with a key

Synonyms
2.

catch for fastening a door or gate; a bar that can be lowered or slid into a groove

Origin

From Middle English lacchen (“to seize, catch, grasp”, verb), from Old English læċċan (“to grasp, take hold of, catch, seize”), from Proto-Germanic *lakjaną, *lakwijaną, *lakkijaną (“to seize”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)leh₂g-, *(s)leh₂gʷ- (“to take, seize”). Cognate with Middle Dutch lakken (“to grasp, catch”).

Phrases

  • chain latch
  • latch on
  • latch on to
  • latch onto
  • on the latch
  • spring latch
  • throat latch

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.