cling Hear it!

cling Definition

cling (kliŋ)

intransitive verb clung, cling·ing

  1. to hold fast by or as by embracing, entwining, or sticking; adhere
    1. to be or stay near, as if holding fast
    2. to be emotionally attached

Etymology: ME clingen < OE clingan, to adhere, stick together < IE *gel-g- < base *gel-: see climb

adjective, noun

clingstone

cling Related Forms

clinger noun cling·ingly adverb clingy adjective -·i·er, -·i·est

cling Synonyms

cling

v.

adhere, clasp, hold fast; see stick 1. See syn. study at stick.

cling Usage Examples

Object

  • film: Apply cling film in layers rather than round like a bandage.
  • wrap: Cover with cling wrap or foil and set in the coldest part of the refrigerator.
  • snow: Communications were also affected as the heavy snow clung to telephone lines to such an extent that many telegraph poles were snapped in two.
  • round: How tenacious are the memories that cling round that mighty old hunter!
  • man: People terrified of the Arab boogie man clung to Bush like a protective father.
  • drive: A clinging drive followed by a rolling nick then a stroke swiftly brought him back into the game.

Preposition: onto

  • pattern: We cling onto the old pattern of family breadwinner, forgetting the role working dads now play in the home.
  • power: They want to cling onto power or power over their own lives, rather than submit to the one true King.
  • side: I clung onto the side and hoped the police wouldn't see me.

Modifying Another Word

  • tenaciously: Instead of calling for what was necessary in the form of a general strike, the SWP leadership tenaciously clung to the downturn outlook.
  • precariously: The population clings precariously to the brink of extinction, scattered across the desolate land, living in the darkest age in history.
  • stubbornly: Cuba Economically isolated and stubbornly clinging to Communism - but yes, it has a motorway network.
  • desperately: England have had their chances to tread upon fingernails desperately clinging to the cliff top.
  • tightly: Clinging tightly to the ledge, we tried to figure out where we were.
  • doggedly: While we fully expected the super high roof Sprinter to end up on its side, it clung doggedly to the surface.

Noun used with modifier

window: GelGems® window clings work best on clean, smooth glass.

Infinitive complement

hope: I clung to hope, I clung to HIM.

Preposition: in

reunion: You cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again.

Preposition: for

life: Also handy if you're clinging for dear life from a vertical rock face and you don't want to drop a compass.

Preposition: like

limpet: Pale specks and smudges turned into houses clinging like limpets to the precipitous jungle-clad mountainsides.

Browse dictionary entries near cling

  1. cline
  2. clincher
  3. clinch
  4. clin-
  5. clime
  6. climbing perch
  7. climbing iron
  8. climber
  9. climb down
  10. climb
  1. clingfish
  2. clinging vine
  3. Clingmans Dome
  4. clingstone
  5. clinic
  6. clinical
  7. clinical thermometer
  8. clinician
  9. clink
  10. clinker