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The Latin verb haerēre has shown remarkable stick-to-itiveness in influencing the English lexicon, which is fitting for a word that means "to be closely attached; to stick." Among its descendants are adhere (literally meaning "to stick"), adhere’s relative adhesive (a word for sticky substances), inhere (meaning "to belong by nature or habit"), and even hesitate (which implies remaining stuck in place before taking action). In Latin, haerēre teamed up with the prefix co- to form cohaerēre, which means "to stick together." Cohaerēre is the ancestor of cohesive, a word borrowed into English in the early 18th century to describe something that sticks together literally (such as dough or mud) or figuratively (such as a society or sports team).
Examples of cohesive in a Sentence
Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
Cooperation to Reach Critical Mass A sense of togetherness permeated the entire two-day forum, with industry operators expressing pride over more cohesive initiatives.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 24 Oct. 2025
Another beginner-friendly strategy is to closely match your lip liner to your lipstick (whether that’s nude, bright red, or deep burgundy) for a crisp and cohesive final look.
—Grace McCarty, Glamour, 24 Oct. 2025
When asked about the main challenges to adjusting prices quickly, more than half of the respondents said a lack of accurate or accessible data and the absence of a cohesive pricing strategy would be obstacles.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cohesive
Cite this Entry
“Cohesive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cohesive. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
cohesive
adjective
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