snatched
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of snatched
First recorded in 1990–95; origin uncertain; possibly from regional American snatching “attractive” (1962); possibly from Black drag culture, where stage performers wear weaves (artificial hairweaves), and if something is amazingly good ( snatched ), it may snatch one's weave off, knock one's socks off (but the connection is unclear)
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.
One key priority is rescuing an American missionary, Kevin Rideout, who was snatched in October in the Nigerien capital Niamey and is believed to be held in Mali by the Islamic State's Sahel branch.
From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026
He approached, climbed the cottonwood tree and snatched a single pale-blue egg.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026
Laura McVay, who works in palliative care at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said the big cat snatched her brown 5½-year-old, pint-sized shih tzu named Declan around 11:30 p.m. mere “feet away from the door.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2026
Just one in the eighth for GB gave Canada the sniff of an opportunity and that snatched it ruthlessly, capitalising on some slack stones in the ninth to lead 8-6 going into the last.
From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026
She snatched a skein of gold and held it to her chest.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
