At-täch'1, v. t.
v. t. [imp. & p. p. ATTACHED; p. pr. & vb. n. ATTACHING.] [Fr. attacher, to tie or fasten; It. attaccare, Sp. & Pg. atacar, Celt. tac, tach, nail; Eng. tack, a small nail, to tack, to fasten; D. tak, Ger. zacke, tine, prong. Cf. ATTACK.]
Sense 1. To bind, fasten, or tie; as, to attach one substance to another by a string, or by glue, &c.
Sense 2. To take by legal authority; to arrest by writ to answer for a debt or demand;—applied to a taking of the person by a civil process; being rarely or never used for the arrest of a criminal. It is applied also to the taking of goods and real estate by an officer, by virtue of a writ or precept to hold the same to satisfy a judgment to be rendered in the suit.
Sense 3. To take, seize, and lay hold on, by force; hence, figuratively, to win the heart of; to fasten or bind by moral influence;—with to; as, attached to a friend; attaching others to us by wealth or flattery.
Sobrina, almost dead with fear, She then attached. Spenser.
Sense 4. To connect, in a figurative sense;—with to; as, to attach great importance to a particular circumstance.
Synonyms—To affix; bind; tie; tack; fasten; connect; subjoin; annex; win; gain over; charm; enamor.