<p><strong>Noun</strong></p><ul><li>A device, usually of some rigid material, for strengthening or supporting objects or fastening them together.</li><li>An appliance with opposite sides or parts that may be adjusted or brought closer together to hold or compress something.</li><li>One of a pair of movable pieces, made of lead or other soft material, for covering the jaws of a vise and enabling it to grasp without bruising.</li><li>A rail having a groove or a number of mortises for receiving the ends of a number of boards to bind them into a flat piece, as a drawing board or door.</li><li>A horizontal timber in a wooden hull, secured to ribs to support deck beams and to provide longitudinal strength.</li></ul><p><strong>Verb</strong></p><ul><li>To fasten with or fix in a clamp.</li><li>To impose or increase controls on.</li><li>To become more strict: There were too many tax loopholes, so the government clamped down.</li></ul><p><strong>Synonyms</strong></p><ul><li>Secure, clench, clinch.</li></ul><p><strong>End of Response</strong></p>