Dictionary

straw-clutchingly en · ADV

Etymology

From straw-clutching + -ly.

Meanings

1. (idiomatic, informal) In a manner which involves clutching at straws.
   • However, in those heightened milliseconds of being able to circumnavigate the entire scene of her imminent destruction, Petra knows that her straw-clutchingly pathetic notion is far from the truth. 2007, Freya North, Pillow Talk, Sourcebooks Landmark, published 2011, →ISBN, page 105:
   • The half-hour show will be hosted by Zoe Ball and fans are already speculating that this could be a hint that we’re about to see the first female Doctor in the show’s 50-year history. That might be a straw-clutchingly tenuous theory but the time is certainly right. 2013 August 2, Michael Hogan, “The time is right for a female Doctor Who”, in The Telegraph, archived from the original on 14 Aug 2013:
   • In other words, any Scottish supporter who had straw-clutchingly hoped for a fitness crisis in the All Blacks game has been disappointed. 1999 October 22, Bryn Palmer, “Same again for men in black”, in The Scotsman:

Forms