a small metal bar that is used to fasten a door or a gate. You raise it to open the door and drop it to fasten it. 门闩；插销 Extra ExamplesShe lifted the latch and went into the garden. 她拉开门闩，走进花园。 She tried the latch, but the door wouldn't open. 她试了试门闩，但门打不开。
- (especially British English)
a type of lock on a door that needs a key to open it from the outside 碰锁；弹簧锁
Word OriginOld English læccan ‘take hold of, grasp (physically or mentally)’, of Germanic origin.