Where does “clingy” come from?

Clingy derives from English cling plus the Middle English suffix -y, from Middle French -ie, Latin -ia, Latin -ivus, and Proto-Indo-European -kos, forming an adjective meaning "tending to adhere or hold fast."

clingy (English): Having a tendency to cling; Pathetically attached...

Definitions

  1. Having a tendency to cling; Pathetically attached...

Ancestry of “clingy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-yAdded to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives...
2Middle English-yDesignates an adjective, in many cases formed by...
3Old English-iġ-y, -ic
4Proto-West Germanic-gForms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a...
5Proto-Germanic-gaz-y
6Proto-Indo-European-ḱos-y, -ic

Words derived from “clingy

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -ḱos
clingy — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer