cohesion
noun
The Times Literary Supplement (London) 
Did you know?
Cohesion is one of the noun forms of cohere; the others are cohesiveness and coherence, each of which has a slightly different meaning. Coherence is often used to describe a person's speech or writing. An incoherent talk or blog post is one that doesn't "hang together;" and if the police pick up someone who they describe as incoherent, it means he or she isn't making sense. But to describe a group or team that always sticks together, you would use cohesive, not coherent. And the words you'd use in Chemistry class to describe the way molecules hang together—for example, the way water forms into beads and drops—are cohesion, cohesive, and cohesiveness.
Examples of cohesion in a Sentence
Alexandria Burris, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Apr. 2024
What’s missing is the cohesion: While individual tracks stand well alone, sharp sonic contrasts drain the album of momentum.
—Shannon J. Effinger, SPIN, 29 Mar. 2024
David Bengali's crisp, blue-sky projections clash with the set's earthy tones, while the varied circus animals lack any visual cohesion.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 22 Mar. 2024
When fresh concerns arrived, the U.S. found enough cohesion and click to answer.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Mar. 2024
Brennan was the right hire, but the staff turnover could impact cohesion.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 1 Mar. 2024
The result is an environment which strains district-wide cohesion, impairs academic achievement, and challenges efficient delivery of services.
—Alec Johnson, Journal Sentinel, 29 Jan. 2024
With small majorities and high levels of political polarization seemingly becoming the norm in Congress, the pressures producing trends of high majority cohesion don't seem to be going anywhere.
—Tia Yang, ABC News, 29 Jan. 2024
The international left, by contrast, has both a history of cohesion and the baggage to go along with it.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 21 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cohesion.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near cohesion
Cite this Entry
“Cohesion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cohesion. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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