cohesive
/kəʊˈhiːsɪv/ (bre, ipa) · /kəʊˈhiːsɪv/ (ame, ipa) · /kō-ˈhē-siv -ziv/ (ame, mw)
cohesive — adjective
- cohesivepositive
- more cohesivecomparative
- most cohesivesuperlative
1. describes a group whose members share goals and methods, so that the group acts
describes a group whose members share goals and methods, so that the group acts as one strong unit rather than a set of separate individuals
After three months of training, the new sales team finally felt cohesive and started hitting its targets.
a cohesive team — describing a group that works as one
Owen praised the choir for being a cohesive group that breathed and moved together on every song.
a cohesive group — applied to performers acting in unison
The novel's eight short stories form a surprisingly cohesive whole when you read them in order.
Mayumi argued that the design team was talented but not cohesive, because every member chased a different vision.
Without a clear leader, the rescue volunteers struggled to stay cohesive during the first hours of the storm.
- unified
stresses being one whole; close synonym in this sense
- united
everyday word; cohesive sounds more formal and analytical
- tight-knit
informal; emphasizes close personal bonds inside the group
- coordinated
stresses smooth working together rather than shared identity
- fragmented
broken into separate pieces that do not work together
- disjointed
lacking smooth connection between parts
- divided
split by disagreement
文法句型
a cohesive [team/group/unit]
cohesive whole
用法筆記
Subject is almost always a group of people working toward a shared purpose (team, unit, family, community) or a multi-part work (essay, album, novel). Distinguish from sense 2 by what the word is doing: here it describes how a group already behaves; sense 2 describes a force that pulls a group together.
常見錯誤
2. describes something — usually an idea, value, person, or shared experience — tha
describes something — usually an idea, value, person, or shared experience — that pulls people or parts together so they stay connected
For many small villages, the weekly market is still a powerful cohesive force in daily life.
a cohesive force — typical noun collocate
Christopher believed that shared meals at home were the most cohesive influence on his three young children.
a cohesive influence on [people]
Language can act as a cohesive bond between people who have lost everything else from their old country.
After the flood, the rebuilding project became a cohesive factor that brought the whole town back together.
- unifying
very close synonym; often interchangeable with 'cohesive force'
- binding
stresses the strength of the connection holding parts together
- consolidating
stresses the process of merging separate parts into one
- divisive
having the opposite effect — driving people apart
- destabilizing
weakening the connections that hold a group together
文法句型
a cohesive [force/influence/factor/bond]
用法筆記
Frequently precedes nouns like force, influence, bond, factor. Subject is the binding agent, not the group itself — that is what separates this sense from sense 1, where the group itself is cohesive.