Cling Meaning
/ˈklɪŋ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounFruit (especially peach) whose flesh adheres strongly to the pit.
nounAdherence; attachment; devotion.
Sentence Examples
We must cling to our faith.
Wet clothes cling to the body.
I have to wrap my sister's dinner in cling film.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The wet leaves began to ____ to the car's windshield tightly.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Wet clothes tend to ____ to your body and feel very cold tonight.
Word Origin & History
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.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"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."
— 1908, O. Henry, Hostages to Momus:
"a more tenacious cling to worldly reſpects,"
— 1641, John Milton, Animadversions upon the Remonstrants Defence against Smectymnuus; republished in A Complete Collection of the Historical, Political, and Miscellaneous Works of John Milton, […], volume I, Amsterdam [actually London: s.n.], 1698, →OCLC, page 139:
"You can make window clings by using thin transparency sheets, school glue, food coloring, and templates."
— 2004, Diane M. Hyde, Year-Round Classroom Tips:
"And what hath life for thee / That thou shouldst cling to it thus?"
— 1823, Felicia Dorothea Browne Hemans, The Vespers of Palermo, Act the First:
"Third-class carriages are grossly overcrowded, with passengers lying on the luggage racks, standing between the benches, and occasionally even riding on the footboards and clinging to the outsides of the coaches for short distances."
— 1950 February, W. Dendy, “Impressions of the Indian Railways—3”, in Railway Magazine, page 120:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The wet leaves began to ____ to the car's windshield tightly.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Wet clothes tend to ____ to your body and feel very cold tonight.