snatch1 verbsnatch2 noun
snatchsnatch1 /snætʃ/ ●○○ verb [transitive] 
WORD ORIGINsnatch1
Origin:
1100-1200 Perhaps from Middle Dutch snacken; ➔ SNACK2VERB TABLE
snatch
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | snatch |
| he, she, it | snatches | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | snatched |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have snatched |
| he, she, it | has snatched | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had snatched |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will snatch |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have snatched |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am snatching |
| he, she, it | is snatching | |
| you, we, they | are snatching | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was snatching |
| you, we, they | were snatching | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been snatching |
| he, she, it | has been snatching | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been snatching |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be snatching |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been snatching |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- A young boy pushed her over and snatched her purse as she fell.
- Before I could say a word, he'd snatched the keys from the table and run out of the room.
- Coles tried to snatch a few hours' sleep.
- Masked gunmen snatched two members of the group from their hotel.
- Someone's going to snatch your purse if you leave it sticking out of your bag like that.
- Unfortunately, street crimes such as purse snatching are common.
- When no one was looking, he snatched a tray of watches and ran out of the shop.
- He snatches a loaf from the baker's counter and is promptly run into gaol.
Longman Language Activatorto sleep for a short time
especially British /take a nap especially American to sleep for a short time during the day: · I was having a nap by the fire one evening when I was woken up by the doorbell· Try to take a nap in the afternoons if you're feeling tired.· The director always takes a nap around this time.
to sleep lightly for a short time, so that you wake up and go back to sleep again, often while you are sitting in a chair or when you do not intend to: · He left his mother dozing by the fire.· Geoff lay dozing gently in a sunlounger.doze fitfully (=to sleep for very short periods): · Some people managed to sleep, but most of us just dozed fitfully.
/have/take a snooze to sleep for a short time, especially during the day when you do not usually sleep: · The baby was snoozing peacefully in her stroller, so we stopped to have a drink.· The study showed that if pilots on long-haul flights take a brief snooze in the cockpit, they're more alert for the landing.
informal to sleep for a short time when you have a chance to, because you are very busy and cannot sleep at your usual time: · I'll go home, snatch a couple of hours' sleep and meet you at four.· I grabbed a little sleep on the train, but it wasn't enough.
British to sleep for a short time during the day because you are tired: · Are you tired? Why don't you have a sleep this afternoon?
to steal from someone in the street to steal money or possessions from someone, especially using threats or violence and in a public place such as a street: · Two men tried to rob him as he left the restaurant.· The woman had been robbed and was badly shaken.
to violently attack someone in the street and rob them: · She decided to move from the city after she was mugged for the third time in less than a year.
to steal someone's bag from them in the street and then run away: · A young boy pushed her over and snatched her purse as she fell.
to take something from someone to take something out of someone's hands: · Let me take your bags -- you look exhausted.· Oh, mom, could you just take this for a second?· He took her coat, and hung it in the hall.take something from somebody: · He walked slowly across the room and took the gun from her.take something off somebody informal: · Can you take some of these books off me?
to take something from someone with a sudden violent movement: · He just grabbed my camera and ran off with it.snatch/grab something from somebody/something: · Gerry snatched her diary from the desk, and she lunged to grab it back.snatch/grab something off somebody informal: · Paul grabbed the bag of sweets off his sister and ran away with it.
to take something important from someone, such as a possession or a right, either as a punishment or in a way that is wrong or unfair: take away something: · Mom's threatened to take away my stereo if my schoolwork doesn't improve.· The new law would take away the rights of workers to go on strike.· That's stupid -- it's like teaching someone to read, then taking away all their books!take something away: · No, Eli, I'm taking it away now!take something away from somebody: · Even though Polly still needs it, the authorities have taken the wheelchair away from her.
to take something such as drugs, guns, or documents from someone who is keeping them illegally or taking them from one place to another: · Police seized 53 weapons and made 42 arrests.· Over 52,000 E-tablets hidden in a car door were seized by customs officials.· Assets worth over $1 million were seized, along with documents relating to the company's financial dealings.
to take something such as a car or an animal away from someone and keep it in a special place until they are officially allowed to have it back: · The act will give the government new rights to impound untaxed cars and crush them. · The medical officer says that the animals will be impounded while tests are carried out.· Police recovered both items, and impounded a black BMW from the murder scene.
to officially take something away from someone, either as a punishment or because they are not allowed to have it: · Your vehicle can be confiscated if you are transporting marijuana.· The authorities will confiscate firearms found on a boat or plane if the owner cannot show proof of US licensing. confiscate something from somebody: · The group claims that billions of dollars in property and bank accounts was confiscated from Jewish businessmen in the Second World War.
if the army or other military organization commandeers something such as a vehicle or a building, they take it away from the owners in order to use it in a war: · Bud's truck had been commandeered by the regiment.· The officers had commandeered every house in the area.· A paramilitary group attempted to commandeer the bus and take it to Madrid.
to take away or not let someone have their rights, advantages etc, especially in a way that seems unfair: · Under Stalin, Soviet citizens were deprived of their most basic human rights.· The boy's parents claim the school's actions have effectively deprived their son of education.· Banning the carnival will deprive law-abiding citizens of a source of culturally valuable entertainment.
to completely take away someone's rights, responsibilities, or a prize they have won, especially as a punishment for doing something wrong: · The captain was stripped of his licence after the collision.· He was formally stripped of his American citizenship.· The ruling authority stripped him of his boxing title after he was convicted of importing heroin.· The court ruled that Learer's conviction did not constitute grounds for stripping her of custody of her four children.
to take something from somewhere quickly and suddenly to quickly and suddenly take something from the place where it is, especially because you are in a hurry: · Grab your coat, we're late.· I'm going to run downstairs and grab some books and stuff - I'll be right back.· It was chaos, everyone was just grabbing drinks from behind the bar.
to take something quickly and violently from the place where it is: · When no one was looking, he snatched a tray of watches and ran out of the shop.· Someone's going to snatch your purse if you leave it sticking out of your bag like that.· Before I could say a word, he'd snatched the keys from the table and run out of the room.
to very quickly and suddenly take something from the place where it is, especially to prevent someone from seeing or touching it: whisk away something: · The waiter whisked away my plate before I'd finished.whisk away: · As soon as the baby was born he was whisked away and put in an incubator.
to put out your hand to take something · I reached for the salt, and knocked over a bottle of wine.· There was a noise outside, and Bill reached for his flashlight.
to suddenly put out your hand in order to take something: · I grabbed at the boy's collar as he ran past.· I snatched at the reins and managed to haul him to a halt.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
He could hear snatches of conversation from across the room.COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB
1to take something away from someone with a quick, often violent, movement SYN grab: He could hear snatches of conversation from across the room.· It is no good wailing when some one unfamiliar, such as Joel Jutge, snatches away the comfort blanket.
The thief snatched her purse and ran.snatch something away/back from somebody Keith snatches toys away from the other children.2to take someone away from a person or place, especially by force: Vargas was snatched from his home by two armed men.3to quickly get something, especially sleep or rest, because you do not have very much time SYN grab: I managed to snatch an hour’s sleep on the train.snatch at something phrasal verb to quickly put out your hand to try to take or hold something: Jessie snatched at the bag but I pulled it away.snatch1 verbsnatch2 noun
snatchsnatch2 noun [countable] EXAMPLES FROM THE CORPUS
- Among snatches of conversation, both of us remember his referring to the underground as being rather like hell.
- As it is, most parents take only brief peeks into classrooms and hear snatches of information about curriculum.
- I turn the volume low, to stop picking up snatches of conversation from next door.
- Many species will, in complete darkness, utter a few snatches of song if disturbed at their roosts.
- She remembered it in vivid violent snatches punctuated by haze or darkness.
- We started to climb, accompanied by intermittent snatches of bird song: wood warbler, garden warbler and willow warbler.
- You know, sitting in a train or walking down the street, little snatches of things.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES He could hear snatches of conversation from across the room.
He could hear snatches of conversation from across the room.PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY► a snatch of conversation/music/song etc
1a snatch of conversation/music/song etc a short part of a conversation, song etc that you hear: - He'd only slept in snatches, an hour at most.
I could hear snatches of the conversation from across the room.2in snatches for short periods: I only slept in snatches during the night.3when someone quickly takes or steals something: reports of a bag snatch4taboo informal a very offensive word for a woman’s sex organ. Do not use this word.