Claspe

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A small metal hook or catch used to hold two edges together ; to hold something firmly by gripping it or to fasten two parts together
2. A fastener, such as a hook or buckle, that secures things together ; to seize something tightly in the hands or to join parts with a catch
3. An metal catch that holds parts fixed in place ; to grasp firmly or to fix two things together so they stay joined

Etymology: "Claspe" is an older spelling of "clasp," used in Middle English, the English of roughly the twelfth to fifteenth centuries. Its final "e" was a spelling habit of the period, and the form appears alongside "clapse" and "clasp" in medieval texts. The noun meant a hook, buckle, or fastener, and the verb meant to grip or embrace. The word's deeper origin is uncertain. It is probably connected to the Old English verb "clyppan," meaning to embrace, which fits the sense of holding something tightly with the arms. Scholars have not settled the exact path from that verb to the noun, so the link should be treated as a likely one rather than a proven one. Over time the spelling settled into "clasp," and the final "e" disappeared from common use.