bonding

The word “bonding” means the process of joining two things securely together. In plain terms, getting close to someone emotionally, or physically joining materials together.

Here is “bonding” used in a sentence: “The bonding of the two metal sheets took several hours to cure.”

“Bonding” is a noun.

“Bonding” is an uncommon word in modern English.

“Bonding” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the process of joining two things securely together.

Bonding is the general process of joining two things securely together, which can include gluing, chemical adhesion, or other methods, while welding specifically joins materials, usually metals, by melting them together. Welding is one particular technique that falls under the broader idea of bonding.

In this context, bonding refers to the forming of a close emotional connection, especially between a parent and child, often built through shared time and physical closeness. This sense is distinct from the physical joining of materials and instead describes an emotional relationship.

A bonding activity is something people do together specifically to build or strengthen an emotional connection, drawing on the sense of bonding as forming a close relationship rather than physically joining objects.