adhesive

[ad-hee-siv, -ziv]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR adhesive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

coated with glue, paste, mastic, or other sticky substance: adhesive bandages.

sticking fast; sticky; clinging.

Physics. of or relating to the molecular force that exists in the area of contact between unlike bodies and that acts to unite them.

noun

a substance that causes something to adhere, as glue or rubber cement.

adhesive tape.

Philately. a postage stamp with a gummed back, as distinguished from one embossed or printed on an envelope or card.

Origin of adhesive

First recorded in 1660–70; adhes(ion) + -ive

Related formsad·he·sive·ly, adverbad·he·sive·ness, nounnon·ad·he·sive, adjectivenon·ad·he·sive·ly, adverbnon·ad·he·sive·ness, nounsem·i·ad·he·sive, adjectivesem·i·ad·he·sive·ly, adverbsem·i·ad·he·sive·ness, nounun·ad·he·sive, adjectiveun·ad·he·sive·ly, adverbun·ad·he·sive·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for adhesive

gummy, sticky, pasty, adherent, holding, clinging, gelatinous, gooey, tenacious, viscous, waxy, glutinous, mucilaginous, viscid, adhering, agglutinant, attaching, clingy, gummed, resinous

Examples from the Web for adhesive

Contemporary Examples of adhesive

Then, the merkin is applied with an adhesive; Ledermann uses a matte substance by Telesis.
Hollywood's Most Private Accessory
Claire Howorth
September 20, 2010
Have you ever seen 11 players with a relationship so adhesive to the ball?
Who Will Win the World Cup?
Tunku Varadarajan
July 10, 2010

Historical Examples of adhesive

This was an adhesive, and used some years after stamps were in use.
The Stamps of Canada
Bertram Poole
I was informed that Decaisne has written a paper on these adhesive threads.
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II
Charles Darwin
Utilised because of adhesive qualities for throwing at a target as darts.
Norman Ten Hundred
A. Stanley Blicq
Adhesive is the scientific, sticking or sticky the popular word.
English Synonyms and Antonyms
James Champlin Fernald
The stiff, wet clay, adhesive to the foot, impeded progress.
English Synonyms and Antonyms
James Champlin Fernald

British Dictionary definitions for adhesive

adhesive

adjective

able or designed to adhere; stickyadhesive tape

tenacious or clinging

noun

a substance used for sticking objects together, such as glue, cement, or paste

Derived Formsadhesively, adverbadhesiveness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for adhesive

adj.

1660s, from French adhésif, formed in French from Latin adhaes-, past participle stem of adhaere (see adherent).

1881, from adhesive (adj.). Originally of postage stamps (adhesive stamp is attested from 1840). Of substances that cause to adhere by 1900.

adhesive in Medicine

adhesive

[ăd-hē′sĭv]

adj.

Tending to adhere; sticky.

Of, relating to, or having the characteristics of an adhesion.

n.

A substance that adheres to a surface or causes adherence between surfaces.

adhesive in Science

adhesive

[ăd-hē′sĭv]

Noun

A substance, such as paste or cement, that causes two surfaces to stick together. Adhesives are made of gelatin or other substances, such as epoxy, resin, or polyethylene.

Adjective

Relating to adhesion.