adhere

present singular third person adheres · participle present adhering · participle past adhered · past adhered · alternative archaic adhære

1. intransitiveTo stick fast or cleave, as a glutinous substance does; to become joined or united.

   Wax adhered to his finger.

   2 more examples

   The sure test of the presence of the disease is found in the dead body of the larva, which is dark and discoloured; and if a toothpick or pin be thrust into it and then drawn back, the body contents will adhere to it in a stringy mass, to the extent of a half or even an entire inch, as if it were mucous or glue; later the bodies of the larvae dry and appear as black scales in the cell bottoms.

   1905, Anna Botsford Comstock, chapter 16, in How to Keep Bees

   December 23 2016, Victoria Neff in Roanoke Rapids Daily Herald, The story of mistletoe Mistletoe is an evergreen perennial shrub that has female plants that produce white berries. These white berries are a favorite food of birds who help to reseed the sticky seeds that adhere to tree branches.

   Synonyms: cleave, cling, stick

2. figurativelyintransitiveTo be attached or devoted by personal union, in belief, on principle, etc.

   Upon the whole, if, by the British dominions, you mean territories subject to the Parliament, you adhere to your usual fallacy, and suppose what you are bound to prove.

   1775 February 23, Alexander Hamilton, “The Farmer Refuted, &c., [23 February] 1775”, in Harold C. Syrett, editor, The Papers of Alexander Hamilton, volumes 1, 1768–1778, New York: Columbia University Press, published 1962, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 103

   4 more examples

   King Ferdinand adopted the magnanimous measure recommended by the queen, but he accompanied it with several shrewd conditions, exacting tribute, military services, and safe passages and maintenance for Christian troops throughout the places which should adhere to Boabdil.

   1829, Washington Irving, chapter 20, in Chronicle of the Conquest of Granada

   She has conceived the high function of poetry as an interpretation and criticism of life, adhering to the canons of her beloved master, Matthew Arnold, and has proven her worth, and the right to receive and exercise the spiritual influence inherited from that great and austere poet.

   1913, William Stanley Braithwaite, A Foremost American Lyrist: An Appreciation

   December 13 2016, Secret aid worker, Secret aid worker: NGOs can be efficient, if it involves sacrificing staff But from then on, everything went full speed. A tight timeline was adhered to and it became clear that the organisation’s new direction saw no value in keeping or developing the talents it had previously hired.

   This paper gives an overview of such commentary it has received, minimal as it is, and highlights a number of inaccuracies that appear to adhere to the dictionary with worrying regularity.

   2018, James Lambert, “Setting the Record Straight: An In-depth Examination of Hobson-Jobson”, in International Journal of Lexicography, volume 31, number 4, →DOI, page 486

3. figurativelyintransitiveTo be consistent or coherent; to be in accordance; to agree.

   For the most part, Hefner's female companions all adhered to the same mold: twentysomething, bosomy and blonde. "Well, I guess I know what I like," he once said when asked about his preferences.

   2017 September 27, David Browne, “Hugh Hefner, 'Playboy' Founder, Dead at 91”, in Rolling Stone

4. transitiveTo fasten by adhesion.

   press on the two layers of paste to adhere them together […].

   1920, Charles Ranhofer, The Epicurean: A Complete Treatise of Analytical and Practical Studies on the Culinary Art, page 211

   2 more examples

   A process in producing playing balls which consists molding a pair of hollow hemispheres from suitable air proof mate rial softening their edges by heat and adhering them to form a unitary hollow sphere inclosing said sphere in a stiffened envelop.

   1903 May 16, ADDISON T SAUNDERS, 785,184 MANUFACTURE OF PLAYING BALLS, US Patent 157,363 (PDF version), page 568

   Adhere them onto light shades of coordinating card stock and cut each piece of card stock %n larger than the image on four sides.

   2001, Rebecca Carter, Vanessa-Ann, The Ultimate Scrapbooking Book, page 96

5. intransitiveScots lawTo affirm a judgment.