to some (great or small) extent; "it was rather cold"; "the party was rather nice"; "the knife is rather dull"; "I rather regret that I cannot attend"; "He's rather good at playing the cello"; "he is kind of shy"
on the contrary; "rather than disappoint the children, he did two quick tricks before he left"; "he didn't call; rather (or instead), he wrote her a letter"; "used English terms instead of Latin ones"
a coupling that connects or disconnects driving and driven parts of a driving mechanism; "this year's model has an improved clutch"
a pedal or lever that engages or disengages a rotating shaft and a driving mechanism; "he smoothely released the clutch with one foot and stepped on the gas with the other"
a number of birds hatched at the same time
a tense critical situation; "he is a good man in the clutch"
to a small degree or extent; "his arguments were somewhat self-contradictory"; "the children argued because one slice of cake was slightly larger than the other"
in a high position or level or rank; "details known by only a few highly placed persons"
to a high degree or extent; favorably or with much respect; "highly successful"; "He spoke highly of her"; "does not think highly of his writing"; "extremely interesting"