cling
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cling¹
- /ˈklɪŋ/
Rhymes with -ɪŋ
Where it comes from
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.
noun clings
- Fruit (especially peach) whose flesh adheres strongly to the pit. Antelope steaks and fried liver to begin on, and venison cutlets with chili con carne and pineapple fritters, and then some sardines and mixed pickles; and top it off with a can of yellow clings and a bottle of beer.
- Adherence; attachment; devotion. a more tenacious cling to worldly reſpects,
- An ornament that clings to a window so as to be seen from outside. You can make window clings by using thin transparency sheets, school glue, food coloring, and templates.
verb clings · clinging · clung · clinged
- To hold very tightly, as to not fall off. Seaweed clung to the anchor.
- To adhere to an object, without being affixed, in such a way as to follow its contours. Used especially of fabrics and films.
- To cause to adhere to, especially by twining round or embracing. I[…] clung my legs as close to his sides as I could.
- To cause to dry up or wither. If thou speak'st false, / Upon the next tree shalt thou hang alive, / Till famine cling thee.
- To dry up or wither. Wood clings.
- To be fond of, to feel strongly about and dependent on.
cling²
- /ˈklɪŋ/
Rhymes with -ɪŋ
Where it comes from
Imitative; compare clink, clang.
verb clings · clinging · clinged
- To produce a high-pitched ringing sound, like a small bell. The tiny chimes clinged the hours and quarters against his right and Kate's left ear. They counted nine and three-quarters.
interjection
- Imitative of a high-pitched ringing sound.
