Link Centre Dictionary

cling

UK/ˈklɪŋ/ US/ˈklɪŋ/ fairly common
verb (3) noun (1)

verb

1.

come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation

  • “The dress clings to her body”
  • “The label stuck to the box”
  • “The sushi rice grains cohere”
Synonyms
2.

to remain emotionally or intellectually attached

  • “He clings to the idea that she might still love him.”
3.

hold on tightly or tenaciously

  • “hang on to your father”
  • “;”
  • “s apron”
Synonyms

noun

1.

fruit (especially peach) whose flesh adheres strongly to the pit

Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English clingen, from Old English clingan (“to adhere”), from Proto-West Germanic *klingan, from Proto-Germanic *klinganą. Cognate with Danish klynge (“to cluster, to crowd”). Compare clump.

Phrases

  • cling film
  • cling on
  • cling peach
  • cling to
  • cling to the skirts of
  • cling wrap
  • clinging vine
  • static cling

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Related verbs

Entails

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.