1
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clinging (to)
Verb
-
Wole faced fixedly forward, both fists clenching the steering wheel.—
David Wright Faladé,
New Yorker,
28 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The crowd of more than 100 people, many clutching drinks from the open bar, roared in approval.—
Stephen Hobbs,
Sacbee.com,
2 Nov. 2025
-
Ditching the fake blood, the TV star wore a pretty pink prom dress and tiara while clutching a flower bouquet to recreate the chilling scene from the film adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name.—
Kate Hogan,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The extra innings were gripping – the Dodgers left the bases loaded in the top of the 10th, the Blue Jays left the tying run on third in the bottom of the 11th.—
Tyler Kepner,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Thin, black bezels surround the edges, while the left bezel thickens to provide a space for gripping the tablet.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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But many others are standing by Carlson.—
Ali Breland,
The Atlantic,
31 Oct. 2025
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The continent that invented and spun out the internet from its first-class research institutions now risks standing by as US founders scale with ease.—
Jan Hammer,
Fortune,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
So, for me, that was the creation of the Anti-American Speech Committee, which is a government panel essentially designed to prosecute artists for holding views or creating work that resists basically the fascist state that has overtaken the American government.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
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Witnesses shared video footage of an agent holding a man down and repeatedly hitting him in the head.—
NPR,
NPR,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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These are especially useful for taking public transport, grabbing a quick coffee, or leaving a small tip at a restaurant.—
Asia London Palomba,
Travel + Leisure,
25 Oct. 2025
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Peterson led the way, scoring 26 points — 24 before halftime — and grabbing four rebounds.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But naturally, Meredith can see right through this plan and refuses to get dragged into this mess — especially when Lisa is already starting to break down at the thought of Meredith not defending her.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
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Then Vice President Cheney condemned those behind the torture scandal, while at the same time defending water-boarding as a useful means of extracting vital intelligence (many intelligence experts say water-boarding is torture, and its victims will say anything to avoid further abuse).—
Ben Wedeman,
CNN Money,
5 Nov. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Clinging (to).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clinging%20%28to%29. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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