"latch onto" meaning in English

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "latches onto",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latching onto",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latched onto",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latched onto",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "latch onto (third-person singular simple present latches onto, present participle latching onto, simple past and past participle latched onto)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"onto\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "They latched onto the idea and gave it up only reluctantly.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2011 September 16, Ben Dirs, “Rugby World Cup 2011: New Zealand 83-7 Japan”, in BBC Sport:",
          "text": "And there was time for two more All Blacks tries, first flanker Adam Thomson flopping over after a break by Jimmy Cowan, before Williams latched onto a clever cross-kick by Kahui for his second touch-down with three minutes remaining.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To obtain, acquire or get and keep hold of something."
      ],
      "id": "en-latch_onto-en-verb-hgS~J7aN",
      "links": [
        [
          "obtain",
          "obtain"
        ],
        [
          "acquire",
          "acquire"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, transitive) To obtain, acquire or get and keep hold of something."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "catch on"
        },
        {
          "word": "cotton on"
        },
        {
          "word": "fasten"
        },
        {
          "word": "get it"
        },
        {
          "word": "get onto"
        },
        {
          "word": "hook on"
        },
        {
          "word": "seize on"
        },
        {
          "word": "take up"
        },
        {
          "word": "tumble"
        },
        {
          "word": "twig"
        },
        {
          "word": "latch on to"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic",
        "transitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-latch onto.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/8/81/En-au-latch_onto.ogg/En-au-latch_onto.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/En-au-latch_onto.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "latch onto"
}

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "latches onto",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latching onto",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latched onto",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "latched onto",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "latch onto (third-person singular simple present latches onto, present participle latching onto, simple past and past participle latched onto)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English phrasal verbs",
        "English phrasal verbs formed with \"onto\"",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English transitive verbs",
        "English verbs",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "They latched onto the idea and gave it up only reluctantly.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2011 September 16, Ben Dirs, “Rugby World Cup 2011: New Zealand 83-7 Japan”, in BBC Sport:",
          "text": "And there was time for two more All Blacks tries, first flanker Adam Thomson flopping over after a break by Jimmy Cowan, before Williams latched onto a clever cross-kick by Kahui for his second touch-down with three minutes remaining.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To obtain, acquire or get and keep hold of something."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "obtain",
          "obtain"
        ],
        [
          "acquire",
          "acquire"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, transitive) To obtain, acquire or get and keep hold of something."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic",
        "transitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-latch onto.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/8/81/En-au-latch_onto.ogg/En-au-latch_onto.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/En-au-latch_onto.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "catch on"
    },
    {
      "word": "cotton on"
    },
    {
      "word": "fasten"
    },
    {
      "word": "get it"
    },
    {
      "word": "get onto"
    },
    {
      "word": "hook on"
    },
    {
      "word": "seize on"
    },
    {
      "word": "take up"
    },
    {
      "word": "tumble"
    },
    {
      "word": "twig"
    },
    {
      "word": "latch on to"
    }
  ],
  "word": "latch onto"
}