clincher

[ klin-cher ]

/ ˈklɪn tʃər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR clincher ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person or thing that clinches.

a statement, argument, fact, situation, or the like, that is decisive or conclusive: The heat was the clincher that made us decide to leave the city.

a nail, screw, etc., for clinching.

Automotive. a clincher tire.

Nearby words

clime, clin-, clin., clinandrium, clinch, clincher, clincher tire, clincher-built, clindamycin, cline, cling

Origin of clincher

1485–95; variant of Middle English clencher (clench + -er¹)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for clincher

This was a clincher—assorted worthies sent their own medals back in protest but everyone else was delighted.
What It Was Like to Watch the Beatles Become the Beatles—Nik Cohn Remembers|Nik Cohn|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Conclusive as this argument is, there is yet another in reserve, which is a clincher.
Abridgement of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856 (4 of 16 vol.)|Various
But the clincher is those two sugar crystals Lloyd had grabbed up when we were in that zoo.
The Dope on Mars|John Michael Sharkey
The last remark was intended as a clincher to settle the affair.
True Blue|W.H.G. Kingston

That clincher has gone to the place whither good clinchers go, forever.
Punchinello, Vol. 2, No. 29, October 15, 1870|Various
Clincher, that which rivets or confirms an argument, an incontrovertible position.
The Slang Dictionary|John Camden Hotten

British Dictionary definitions for clincher

clincher

/ (ˈklɪntʃə) /

noun

informal something decisive, such as a fact, score, etc

a person or thing that clinches

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012