How to use claw in a sentence

40 example sentences · noun, verb

Claw means a curved, pointed, horny projection on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird. Example: “Once that bank gets its claws into you, it doesn't let go easily.”

Examples of claw by meaning

verbTo scratch or to tear at.

When she clawed at her chest and neck, the crumbs maddeningly slid back onto her face.2012, John Branch, “Snow Fall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek”, in New York Times

verbTo move with one's fingertips.

De Gea was United's hero again within seconds of Hernandez's equaliser, diving to his left to claw away Dirk Kuyt's shot as he got on the end of a superb cross from Stewart Downing.2011 October 15, Phil McNulty, “Liverpool 1 - 1 Man Utd”, in BBC Sport

More sentences with claw

Once that bank gets its claws into you, it doesn't let go easily.From the entry get one's claws into
Some turtles use their claw flutter as a means of communication, particularly in mating.From the entry flutter
That cat will always get its claws out when it sees a mouse.From the entry get one's claws out
You'd better watch out: she's got her claws out for you.From the entry get one's claws out
I was initially refused a refund, but eventually managed to claw back part of the money.From the entry claw back
He was killed by coyotes; he died by tooth, fang, and claw.From the entry tooth, fang, and claw
The cat’s sharp claws raked the side of my face.From the entry rake
A cat can protract and retract its claws.From the entry protract
A good pair of nails to cratch and claw.From the entry cratch
A cat can retract its claws.From the entry retract
The tiger clawed off her face.From the entry claw off
We love nature, but nature doesn't love us. One night in the Amazon rainforest will show us that nature is red in tooth and claw.From the entry red in tooth and claw
A tiny paw pokes out, an itty-bitty murder mitten tipped with filthy sharp claws.2025, Brittany Kelley, Relationship Goals, page 141. From the entry murder mitten
Veiksaar screamed, and reached up to claw at her husband's face with her fingernails.2024 September 28, HarryBlank, “Not Ready for Prime Time”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 29 Sep 2024. From the entry gout
There was no flutter of claws requiring me to blast a tape.2022, Quiara Alegría Hudes, My Broken Language, Random House Publishing Group. From the entry blast
Mommy curled in bliss and dug her claws into her sheets.2022 November 23, @WeeWizzyLizzy, “[Microfic] Mommy's Night”, in Fur Affinity, page 2. From the entry diapertent
This “merwolf” used the claws of its webbed paws to scale the strut.2021, P. Benjamin Mains, The Phoenix Rises: Beyond Imagination, number 1, FriesenPress, →ISBN, page 235. From the entry merwolf
We really do get like animals, trying to claw one another apart in there.2018, Paul Zimmerman, The New Thinking Man's Guide to Professional Football. From the entry pit
The other lunged to the side of the second and clamped one clawed hand around its muzzle.2017 April, Marie Brennan [pseudonym; Bryn Neuenschwander], chapter 10, in Within the Sanctuary of Wings: A Memoir by Lady Trent, New…. From the entry ruff
A hand floated beside the corpse, waxish white, looking more like a claw than ever.2016, Sigrid Weidenweber, From Gulag to Freedom, →ISBN. From the entry waxish
The others waged active war, claws xylophoning across Jack's pinwheeling swords.2015 July 7, Guillermo del Toro, Daniel Kraus, Trollhunters: The Book That Inspired the Netflix Animated Series TROLLHUNTERS!, Disney…. From the entry xylophone
But when Louis showed his claws, Lothar knew he meant business.2014, Janet L. Nelson, Charles The Bald, page xiv. From the entry show one's claws
To claw back the money, the Portuguese hired the warriors of a nearby liurai as tax collectors.2013, Gordon [Patrick] Peake, “The Portuguese Monument”, in Beloved Land: Stories, Struggles, and Secrets from Timor-Leste, Brunswick…. From the entry hoodwink
He held out a severely mangled hand, with clawed, yellowish nails.2012, Andrew Vachss, Blackjack: A Cross Novel. From the entry toadish
A cast of blue crabs weathered the underwater turbulence by clinging to coral with their claws.2011, J. E. Bright, Deepwater Disaster, Stone Arch Books. From the entry cast
The pre-dead humans who would meet the tips of her claws if they approached Strider again.2011, Gena Showalter, The Darkest Surrender. From the entry pre-dead
A pair of lasery, talon-rich claws landed atop two capsized frigates to survey the damage.2008, Mister Rengerz [pseudonym], “Commotion from the Ocean”, in Ring Dragonz, Rockford, Ill.: Helm Publishing, →ISBN, page 243. From the entry lasery
Then lorek's rear claws dug into the links of Iofur's chain-mail sark and ripped downward.2007, Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials, Bluefire, →ISBN, page 259. From the entry sark
Keeping your iggie's claws trimmed makes life much more pleasant for both of you.2007, Lenny Flank, Iguanas: Their Biology and Captive Care, page 139. From the entry iggie
The Boy shakes his head and the Toby comes on to the market wielding a claw hammer.2006, David Eldridge, Market Boy, →ISBN, page 29. From the entry toby
Gasping, nearly overcome from evading the swinging claws, she thrust the fork into the plum-colored mouth.2002 November 8, Midge Shusta, “Moon of the Green Mountain Mornings”, in Tsali’s Hatchet, [Bloomington, Ind.]: 1stBooks, →ISBN, page 86. From the entry plum-colored
Flattened carapace and claws, and large modified maxillipeds used to gather planktonic food.2001, Julian Sprung, Invertebrates: A Quick Reference Guide, page 164. From the entry maxilliped
When threatened, a tamandua may sit up on its hind legs and brandish its sharp curved claws.1999, John C. Kricher, A Neotropical Companion: An Introduction to the Animals, Plants, and Ecosystems of the New World Tropics, 2nd…. From the entry tamandua
In English folklore, a barghest is a monstrous dog with huge claws and teeth.1999, Charles Edwin Price, Mysterious Knoxville: Ghost Stories, Monster Tales, and Bizarre Incidents from the “Gateway to the Smokies”…. From the entry barghest
The deinonychus dinosaurs with the teeth and raking claws were big solid humans in the real.1994, Gwyneth Jones, North Wind, New York, N.Y.: Tor, published 1996, →ISBN, page 224. From the entry deinonychus
Unlike dogs, cats have retractable claws which do not wear down when walking.1991, Morgan Kerr, Norman Kerr, An Introduction to Cat Care, page 63. From the entry husk
His eyes unhungrily saw shelves of tins, sardines, gaudy lobsters' claws.1989 May, Dennis Brown, The Modernist Self in Twentieth-Century English Literature: A Study in Self-Fragmentation, London: Palgrave…. From the entry unhungrily
She yawned a fangful yawn, stretched her claws and sat up.1982, David Hazard, “The Tale of a Bird”, in Stories, Songs, and Poems from The Peaceable Kingdom, page 26. From the entry fangful

Meaning of claw

noun A curved, pointed, horny projection on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird.
noun A foot equipped with such.
noun The pincer (chela) of a crustacean or other arthropod.

Full definition of claw

Questions about claw in a sentence

How do you use claw in a sentence?: Claw is used as a noun and verb. For example: “Once that bank gets its claws into you, it doesn't let go easily.”
What is a short sentence with claw?: “A cat can retract its claws.”
What does claw mean?: Claw means a curved, pointed, horny projection on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird.

Adapted from Wiktionary: claw (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use claw in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/claw. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.