CLEAVING Synonyms: 14 Similar and Opposite Words

cleaving

verb

present participle of cleave

as in adhering

to hold to something firmly as if by adhesion you should resolutely cleave to the facts in your report

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of cleaving It can be made cleanly by cleaving the hydrogen out of water using clean electricity. — Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2026 Imagine a termite carving a path like a jumbled ball of string through a tree trunk, instead of an axe cleaving a single vector. — New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2026 Daemon struggles to his feet, dazed, and begins cleaving his way through the smouldering city. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 By the time Lincoln was elected president in 1860, slavery was already cleaving the country. — Chris Kenning, USA Today, 2 July 2026 Something like cleaving a payroll system in three has to be done flawlessly, for example, so staff still get paid on time. — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 12 June 2026 Inequality is cleaving the haves and the have-nots. — Annie Lowrey, The Atlantic, 24 May 2026 The shakeup in Kraft Heinz’s senior ranks is an initial step in CEO Steve Cahillane’s ambitious plan to turn around the company, instead of cleaving its top-performing condiments and boxed meals apart from its lower-growth grocery staples. — Kristina Peterson, Bloomberg, 18 Feb. 2026 And of course, from a more skeptical perspective, the whole project could be described as cleaving close to the wisdom of the strippers in Gypsy. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cleaving

Verb

Repeat guests begin wrapping their feet with tape and adhering gel pads to prevent blisters.

— Johanna Wolfe, Robb Report, 22 Aug. 2026
Unlike in Cutud, participants are mostly female faith healers adhering not to vows but to mystic trances and possession.

— H.M.A. Leow, JSTOR Daily, 10 July 2026

Definition of adhering

Verb

James Pantemis stopped two shots for Portland (9-12-5), which is clinging to the ninth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026
In the eighth inning, with the Royals clinging to a 3-2 lead in rainy conditions at PNC Park, things looked good for KC.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of clinging

Verb

Most leaders are sticking the initial demands contained in the African Union’s position on the issue adopted in 2005, which includes a demand for at least two permanent seats on the Security Council.

— Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
Most leaders are sticking the initial demands contained in the African Union's position on the issue adopted in 2005, which includes a demand for at least two permanent seats on the Security Council.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Sep. 2026