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CLING TO
I. (verb)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Hold firmly, usually with one's hands
Example:
She clutched my arm when she got scared
Synonyms:
cling to; clutch; hold close; hold tight
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "cling to" is one way to...):
hold; take hold (have or hold in one's hands or grip)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "cling to"):
cuddle; draw close; nest; nestle; nuzzle; snuggle (move or arrange oneself in a comfortable and cozy position)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Context examples:
Ill armed and half starved, they were still desperate men, to whom danger had lost all fears: for what was death that they should shun it to cling to such a life as theirs?
(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
It was not true, she knew that and tried to put it away, but the natural craving for affection was strong, and Amy's happiness woke the hungry longing for someone to 'love with heart and soul, and cling to while God let them be together'.
(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)
The sun sank beneath the horizon as we landed, and as I touched the shore I felt those cares and fears revive which soon were to clasp me and cling to me for ever.
(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)
