clench
verb (used with object)
to close (the hands, teeth, etc.) tightly.
had been clenching
-
past perfect progressiveof clench.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I had been clenching my teeth so hard, my jaw hurt.
From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
One of the onlookers, who had been clenching his teeth to suppress hot speech, now spoke up:—
From "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London
He wondered why his hands pained him, and, looking at them found that he had been clenching them until the nails had made deep impressions in his palms.
From Andy at Yale Or, The Great Quadrangle Mystery by Roy Eliot Stokes
There seemed only one answer possible, and my muscles were stiffening for it when suddenly Miss Falconer's handkerchief, a mere wisp of linen which she had been clenching between her fingers, dropped to the floor.
From The Firefly of France by Marion Polk Angellotti
