1
a
: any of various strong adhesive substances
especially
: a hard protein chiefly gelatinous substance that absorbs water to form a viscous solution with strong adhesive properties and that is obtained by cooking down collagenous materials (such as hides or bones)
b
: a solution of glue used for sticking things together
2
: something that binds together
enough social glue … to satisfy the human desire for community—
E. D. Hirsch, Jr.
E. D. Hirsch, Jr.
glued; gluing also glueing
1
: to cause to stick tightly with or as if with glue
gluing the parts together
used that war to glue together a frail story—Gloria Emerson
Gloria Emerson2
: to cause to remain continuously or to be fixed steadily
—usually used with to
the spectators were glued to their seats
all eyes glued to the TV screen
Synonyms
Examples of glue in a Sentence
Noun
The hardware store offers several different glues.
used glue to stick the photo in the album
Verb
I glued the pieces of the cup back together.
Recent Examples on the WebSara Novak, Discover Magazine, 12 Apr. 2024
The dark matter acts as a gravitational glue, holding the stars in their group.
—Isaac Schultz / Gizmodo, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
The traps use a UV LED light to naturally lure in flying insects while the glue trap does the rest.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Mar. 2024
And Julie was the social glue that held that stuff together.
—Ian Zack, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Cut a small piece of ribbon and glue it to the center of the card's cover; this will become the flower stem.
—Nicole Harris, Parents, 20 Mar. 2024
Applying electricity for a few seconds to a soft material, such as a slice of raw tomato or chicken, can strongly bond it to a hard object, such as a graphite slab, without any tape or glue, a new study finds.
—IEEE Spectrum, 19 Mar. 2024
Childress says Duffy, whose character is judged harshly by the men and women of her community, is the glue that binds everything together.
—Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, 3 Apr. 2024
Your stylist will either use a plier-like tool to separate the tapes or a special solvent to dissolve the proteins of the glue so the extension can easily slide out with minimal tugging.
—Tayler Adigun, Allure, 25 Mar. 2024
Makena Kelly, WIRED, 18 Apr. 2024
About 95 million viewers were glued to their television screens as the chase was broadcast on multiple networks, four days after Simpson’s ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were found stabbed to death outside of her Los Angeles home.
—Sean Neumann, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Commissioned by Stazione Centrale, the piece evokes the mountains from which the tunnel was excavated, with paper images glued onto vertical slats and distributed to form a layered composition with the station visible behind.
—James Imam, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
On a day when America looked up at the heavens, late night TV kept our eyes glued to the screens for an all-heart performance.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 9 Apr. 2024
In the ensuing years, your author lost a couple of the images glued to index cards by him and his grandmother.
—USA TODAY, 8 Apr. 2024
Plus, the disaster that brings the 118 to the mansion is a contestant who glued herself to the driveway.
—Patrick Gomez, EW.com, 30 Mar. 2024
And that you were actually arrested on graduation night for breaking and entering into your high school in an attempt to glue the locks of the doors.
—Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 5 Apr. 2024
That trade-off, in addition to Nvidia’s efforts to glue its chips together with high-speed links, suggests that upgrades to other key components for AI supercomputers, like that proposed by Lightmatter, could become more important.
—Will Knight, WIRED, 4 Apr. 2024
Noun
Futrell says that Neanderthals had pretty complex behaviors, including burying their dead and distilling glue out of tree bark.
—Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 12 Apr. 2024
The dark matter acts as a gravitational glue, holding the stars in their group.
—Isaac Schultz / Gizmodo, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
The traps use a UV LED light to naturally lure in flying insects while the glue trap does the rest.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Mar. 2024
And Julie was the social glue that held that stuff together.
—Ian Zack, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Cut a small piece of ribbon and glue it to the center of the card's cover; this will become the flower stem.
—Nicole Harris, Parents, 20 Mar. 2024
Applying electricity for a few seconds to a soft material, such as a slice of raw tomato or chicken, can strongly bond it to a hard object, such as a graphite slab, without any tape or glue, a new study finds.
—IEEE Spectrum, 19 Mar. 2024
Childress says Duffy, whose character is judged harshly by the men and women of her community, is the glue that binds everything together.
—Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, 3 Apr. 2024
Your stylist will either use a plier-like tool to separate the tapes or a special solvent to dissolve the proteins of the glue so the extension can easily slide out with minimal tugging.
—Tayler Adigun, Allure, 25 Mar. 2024
Verb
Unlike with a New York Times article or an Instagram post, users are often glued to a movie or show, and some services can force their audiences to watch ads, depending on their subscription tier.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 18 Apr. 2024
About 95 million viewers were glued to their television screens as the chase was broadcast on multiple networks, four days after Simpson’s ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were found stabbed to death outside of her Los Angeles home.
—Sean Neumann, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Commissioned by Stazione Centrale, the piece evokes the mountains from which the tunnel was excavated, with paper images glued onto vertical slats and distributed to form a layered composition with the station visible behind.
—James Imam, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
On a day when America looked up at the heavens, late night TV kept our eyes glued to the screens for an all-heart performance.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 9 Apr. 2024
In the ensuing years, your author lost a couple of the images glued to index cards by him and his grandmother.
—USA TODAY, 8 Apr. 2024
Plus, the disaster that brings the 118 to the mansion is a contestant who glued herself to the driveway.
—Patrick Gomez, EW.com, 30 Mar. 2024
And that you were actually arrested on graduation night for breaking and entering into your high school in an attempt to glue the locks of the doors.
—Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 5 Apr. 2024
That trade-off, in addition to Nvidia’s efforts to glue its chips together with high-speed links, suggests that upgrades to other key components for AI supercomputers, like that proposed by Lightmatter, could become more important.
—Will Knight, WIRED, 4 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'glue.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near glue
Cite this Entry
“Glue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/glue. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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