/ weld; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
1.
weld A and B (together) | weld A (on) to B to join pieces of metal together by heating their edges and pressing them together :
[ vn ]
to weld a broken axle
The car has had a new wing welded on.
All the parts of the sculpture have to be welded together.
[also v ]
2.
[ vn ] weld sb/sth into sth | weld sth together to unite people or things into a strong and effective group :
They had welded a bunch of untrained recruits into an efficient fighting force.
The crisis helped to weld the party together.
■ noun
a joint made by welding
••
WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (in the sense become united ): alteration (probably influenced by the past participle) of the verb well in the obsolete sense melt or weld heated metal.