clinging on
Refusing to release
Clinging on describes holding tightly to something, often with difficulty or desperation.
The phrase emphasizes precariousness—someone clinging on is barely maintaining their grip: She was clinging on to the edge of the cliff.
Figuratively, it suggests struggling to maintain a position or survive: The company is clinging on despite mounting losses.
- attachmentConnection or fondness
- holding tightMaintaining a firm grasp
- graspSeize or understand
- dependenceState of needing another
- clutchMechanism linking engine to gearbox
hold · last-ditch · last gasp · bitter end · endurance · adhere · fortitude · grit · fingertips · by a thread · tenacity · nostalgia · sentimentality · resilience · persistence · white-knuckle · latch · determination
clinging onletting go
Releasing one's grasp
releasing · dropping · relinquishing · freeing · unclenching
clinging ongiving up
Choosing to stop trying
surrendering · quitting · capitulating · throwing in the towel · abandoning
clinging onletting go
Releasing one's grasp
moving on · detaching · cutting loose · breaking free · self-reliance