English

Adverb

straw-clutchingly ‎(comparative more straw-clutchingly, superlative most straw-clutchingly)

1. In a manner which involves clutching at straws
   • 1999, Bryn Palmer, "Same again for men in black", The Scotsman, 22 October 1999:

     In other words, any Scottish supporter who had straw-clutchingly hoped for a fitness crisis in the All Blacks game has been disappointed.

   • 2007, Freya North, Pillow Talk, Sourcebooks Landmark (2011), ISBN 9781402254468, page 105:

     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.

   • 2013, Michael Hogan, "The time is right for a female Doctor Who", The Telegraph, 2 August 2013:

     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.

   • For more examples of usage of this term, see Citations:straw-clutchingly.