cling
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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to adhere closely; stick to.
The wet paper clings to the glass.
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to hold tight, as by grasping or embracing; cleave.
The children clung to each other in the dark.
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to be or remain close.
The child clung to her mother's side.
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to remain attached, as to an idea, hope, memory, etc..
Despite the predictions, the candidate clung to the belief that he would be elected.
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to cohere.
noun
noun
verb
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(often foll by to) to hold fast or adhere closely (to something), as by gripping or sticking
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(foll by together) to remain in contact (with each other)
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to be or remain physically or emotionally close
to cling to outmoded beliefs
noun
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agriculture the tendency of cotton fibres in a sample to stick to each other
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obsolete agriculture diarrhoea or scouring in animals
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short for clingstone
Other Word Forms
- clinger noun
- clinginess noun
- clinging adjective
- clingingly adverb
- clingingness noun
- clingy adjective
- unclinging adjective
Etymology
Origin of cling1
First recorded before 900; Middle English clingen, Old English clingan “to stick together, shrink, wither”; akin to clench
Origin of cling2
1835–45; by shortening from clingstone, or special use of cling 1 (noun)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
My wet clothes clung to my goose-bumped skin, and I leaned over and flipped the switch to light the gas fireplace.
From Literature
A 2-0 defeat on Friday continued Villa's poor form - they have won just three of their past 10 Premier League games as they cling on to third in the Premier League.
From BBC
People faced a hard summer in 1850, clinging to life, and wondering more and more about what lay beyond.
From Literature
Chicken cutlet starts with either a boneless chicken thigh or a boneless chicken breast that’s covered with cling wrap and pounded to even thickness.
From Salon
The almost overly seasoned bits that clung stubbornly to the metal.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
