CLINGING (TO) Synonyms: 119 Similar and Opposite Words

clinging (to)

verb

present participle of cling (to)

as in keeping (to)

to give steadfast support to continued to cling to the old ideas of child rearing long after they had gone out of fashion

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as in clenching

to have or keep in one's hands clung to a pole in the subway car to keep from falling as it lurched along

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for clinging (to)

Verb

Video captured from the drone’s perspective and released on Facebook, shows the frustrated bobcat standing by a staircase, growling and arching its back at the hovering machine.

— Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 2 Sep. 2026
Andrew Garfield is standing by his longtime belief that Spider-Man could be gay.

— Sameen Chaudhry, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of standing by

Verb

Years ago, after Jake died, my instinct as a medical student was anger — clenching my teeth and jabbing a pen into my notepad, making a line of inky holes along the margin.

— Caroline Cherston, STAT, 25 Aug. 2026
Janet held the phone away from her ear, clenching her teeth against Maggie’s booming voice.

— Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 23 July 2026

Definition of clenching

Verb

This week provides a major test for Houser and the offense with defending ACC champ Duke and defensive guru Manny Diaz coming to Champaign.

— The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
The office of the state attorney general is responsible for defending death penalty convictions on appeal.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of defending

Verb

As the deli’s surveillance video rolled, his client went from calmly standing at the counter with a bottle of Gatorade to staggering to the floor, clutching his leg and tearing at his pants.

— Alison J. Stein, HubSpot, 1 Sep. 2026
In a satiric short video, Rabid Dogs, 2002, for example, white-collar workers dress upas rapacious canines, clutching Burberry bags in their mouths and traversing cubicles on all fours.

— Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of clutching

Verb

On the flip side is the Great Seal of the United States, with the bald eagle gripping arrows in one claw and an olive branch in the other.

— Jesse Bedayn, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
The smaller rocks want to wedge themselves between tread blocks, so tires have to eject those, while also gripping them enough to propel the vehicle.

— Michael Febbo, The Drive, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of gripping

Verb

Markets are currently pricing in a near 50-50 chance of the Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee hiking rates versus holding them at their September meeting, according to the CME’s FedWatch tool.

— Chloe Taylor, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2026
Harvey adjusted for Nix’s throw, leaping up at the front of the end zone and holding onto the ball through contact.

— Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of holding

Verb

Madrid may have grand monuments, lvish fountains, domed neoclassical buildings and Renaissance squares, yet the Spanish capital has sometimes been overshadowed by seemingly headline-grabbing cities such as Barcelona or Seville.

— Eddi Fiegel, Robb Report, 3 Sep. 2026
From a Dooney & Bourke handbag marked down by nearly $150 to a cozy Peanuts Halloween blanket for less than $24, our readers have been busy grabbing all the biggest discounts across fashion, home essentials, travel gear and fall staples.

— Kasey Caminiti, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of grabbing

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.

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clinging

clinging (to)

clings

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“Clinging (to).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clinging%20%28to%29. Accessed 10 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of clinging (to)

verb

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