cohesion
C1Formal, Academic, Technical
Definition
Meaning
The act or state of sticking together; the force that holds things together as a unit.
A sense of unity, belonging, or solidarity within a group; logical and consistent connection between parts of a text, argument, or system.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Primarily a noun. Its central concepts are unity, integration, and internal bonding. It describes both physical sticking (e.g., molecules) and abstract connection (e.g., team spirit, text flow).
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in meaning or usage. The term is equally common and used identically in both academic and technical contexts.
Connotations
Positive connotations of unity, strength, and effective functioning in both varieties.
Frequency
Slightly higher frequency in British English in formal/academic registers, but the difference is marginal.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
lack of + cohesionpromote + cohesion + within + [group]The + cohesion + of + [noun phrase]achieve + greater + cohesionVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “The glue that holds [something] together (conceptual idiom for cohesion).”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to teamwork and unified effort, e.g., 'The new manager improved team cohesion, leading to better project outcomes.'
Academic
Describes logical flow in writing or unity in societies, e.g., 'The essay lacked cohesion between its arguments.' In physics/chemistry, refers to intermolecular forces.
Everyday
Used to describe how well a group gets along or works together, e.g., 'Our book club has great cohesion; everyone contributes.'
Technical
In materials science: 'the intermolecular attraction causing cohesion.' In linguistics: 'grammatical and lexical devices that create cohesion in a text.'
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The new policies aimed to cohese the diverse membership.
- The mixture failed to cohese properly.
American English
- The coach's speech helped cohese the players into a unit.
- The materials are designed to cohese under pressure.
adverb
British English
- The paragraphs were cohesively linked.
- The group worked cohesively throughout the crisis.
American English
- The elements fit together cohesively.
- The department functions very cohesively.
adjective
British English
- The cohesive forces in the community were strong.
- A more cohesive argument is needed.
American English
- The team was highly cohesive after the retreat.
- They lacked a cohesive strategy.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- A good team has cohesion.
- The class worked with cohesion on the project.
- The manager tried to build cohesion among the staff.
- There was a lack of cohesion in their plan.
- Social cohesion is vital for a stable society.
- The essay's main weakness was its poor cohesion between paragraphs.
- The study examines the linguistic devices that create textual cohesion.
- Political cohesion within the alliance began to fray under economic pressure.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a COHESIVE team: they CO-HERE, meaning they stick (here) together (co-) as one.
Conceptual Metaphor
UNITY IS BONDING / A GROUP IS A SOLID OBJECT (held together by cohesion).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct translation with 'когезия' as it is a very formal, scientific cognate. In social contexts, 'сплочённость' is more natural. In textual contexts, 'связность' is appropriate.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing 'cohesion' with 'coherence' (coherence is about clarity/logical sense; cohesion is about physical or social sticking). Misspelling as 'cohession'. Using it in overly informal contexts where 'teamwork' or 'closeness' would suffice.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'cohesion' LEAST likely to be used?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Cohesion refers to the grammatical and lexical 'sticking together' of surface elements (e.g., using pronouns, conjunctions). Coherence refers to the underlying logical meaning and consistency that makes sense to the reader/listener. A text can be cohesive but not coherent (well-connected but nonsensical).
Yes, especially in scientific contexts. For example, 'the cohesion of water molecules creates surface tension.' In everyday language, it's more often abstract.
Generally yes, as it implies unity and strength. However, it is neutral in descriptive analysis (e.g., 'analyzing the cohesion of the text'). The phrase 'lack of cohesion' is negative.
The direct verb is 'cohese,' but it is rare and formal. More commonly, people use phrases like 'hold together,' 'unite,' 'integrate,' or the adjective 'cohesive' (e.g., 'to make something cohesive').
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