Bonding

How to spell bonding

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce bonding

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does bonding mean?

1. nounThe forming of a close emotional connection or attachment between people.
2. nounThe way atoms are held together by attractive forces to form molecules.
3. nounThe joining of two surfaces or materials using adhesive, heat, or pressure.

Bonding in a sentence

• The retreat was designed to encourage team bonding among new staff.

• The textbook chapter explains covalent bonding between atoms.

• The dentist repaired the chipped tooth with composite bonding.

• Early bonding between a parent and baby supports later development.

• Hydrogen bonding gives water many of its unusual properties.

• Proper bonding between the layers prevents the laminate from peeling.

Where does bonding come from?

Language of origin: Old Norse

The word grows from the noun 'bond', which English took from Old Norse 'band', meaning literally 'something that ties or binds'. That sense of a physical fastening, a rope or fetter, broadened over the medieval period into figurative ties: a legal obligation that binds a person to pay, and later the emotional ties that bind people together. The form 'bonding' is the gerund, the '-ing' noun built from the verb 'to bond', and it became common in twentieth century psychology to describe the close attachment forming between, say, a parent and an infant. Chemistry borrowed the same image for the way atoms are held together, and dentistry and construction use it for the way materials are made to stick. The spelling is wholly regular, which is why the only real risk is doubling the wrong letter; remember it is a single 'd' followed by '-ing'.

How the word is built

• bond (from Old Norse band: something that binds)
• -ing (gerund/noun suffix)