cling
1to adhere closely; stick to: The wet paper clings to the glass.
to hold tight, as by grasping or embracing; cleave: The children clung to each other in the dark.
to be or remain close: The child clung to her mother's side.
to remain attached, as to an idea, hope, memory, etc.: Despite the predictions, the candidate clung to the belief that he would be elected.
to cohere.
the act of clinging; adherence; attachment.
Origin of cling
1Other words for cling
Other words from cling
- clinger, noun
- cling·ing·ly, adverb
- cling·ing·ness, noun
- un·cling·ing, adjective
Other definitions for cling (2 of 2)
a clingstone.
Origin of cling
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use cling in a sentence
Catherine Elsmere had very little of the soft clingingness which makes the charm of a certain type of woman.
Robert Elsmere | Mrs. Humphry WardThe way all the old clingingness has been thrown aside is amazing.
Ann Veronica | H. G. Wells
British Dictionary definitions for cling
/ (klɪŋ) /
(often foll by to) to hold fast or adhere closely (to something), as by gripping or sticking
(foll by together) to remain in contact (with each other)
to be or remain physically or emotionally close: to cling to outmoded beliefs
agriculture, mainly US the tendency of cotton fibres in a sample to stick to each other
agriculture obsolete diarrhoea or scouring in animals
short for clingstone
Origin of cling
1Derived forms of cling
- clinging, adjective
- clinger, noun
- clingingly, adverb
- clingy, adjective
- clinginess or clingingness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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