IPA: /klɪŋ/
KK: /klɪŋ/
To hold on tightly to something or to stay very close to someone or something.
The child clung to her mother during the thunderstorm.
Past: clung
Past Participle: clung
A type of fruit that has flesh that sticks to the pit or stone inside it, such as certain peaches.
The cling of the peach made it difficult to separate the flesh from the pit.
Cling originates from Old English 'clingan', meaning to adhere or stick. The word describes the action of holding on tightly or sticking closely to something.
Imagine something that 'sticks' closely — that's what cling means.