adhesion
adhesion Lexical Profile
adhesion Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The action or process of sticking to a surface or object, or the intermolecular attraction that holds dissimilar particles or surfaces together.
"Sanding the wooden surface before painting improves the adhesion of the primer."
An abnormal band of fibrous scar tissue that forms between internal organs or tissues that are not normally connected, often following surgery or inflammation.
"The surgeon carefully removed the abdominal adhesions that had developed after her previous operation."
Formal agreement, support, or allegiance given to a cause, treaty, or party.
"The newly independent nation announced its formal adhesion to the international trade treaty."
Word Nuance & Usage
'Adhesion' refers primarily to the physical sticking of surfaces or abnormal medical tissue bonding, whereas 'adherence' is preferred for figurative devotion to rules, beliefs, or treatment plans. In physics, 'adhesion' is the attraction between unlike molecules, distinct from 'cohesion', which is the attraction between like molecules.
• Rhymes for adhesion
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the early 17th century from French adhésion or directly from Latin adhaesio, a noun of action from adhaerere ('to stick to'), formed from ad- ('to') and haerere ('to stick, cling').