tə̇ˈnāshəs also teˈn- adjective
Etymology: Latin tenac-, tenax tending to hold fast (from tenēre to hold) + English -ious — more at thin
1.
a. : having parts or elements strongly adhering to each other : not easily pulled apart : cohesive , tough
her ships provided a slender, but very tenacious , link between East and West — R.W.Southern
a tenacious metal
b. : tending to adhere to another substance : adhesive , sticky , viscous
slippers stuck fast in the tenacious yellow clay and were nearly dragged off my feet — Mary S. Broome
tenacious sputum
2.
a. : holding fast or tending to hold fast : persistent in maintaining or adhering to something valued or habitual (as an opinion, purpose, way of life)
a mind not gifted to discover truth but tenacious to hold it — T.S.Eliot
here … men are slow of speech, tenacious of opinion, and averse … to innovation of any sort — C.B.Nordhoff & J.N.Hall
b. : retentive
combined an encyclopedic knowledge with a tenacious memory — C.M.Fuess
3. : not yielding : obstinate , stubborn
men are more tenacious dieters than women — Newsweek
the transition to a new theory is seldom easy; old ideas are apt to be tenacious — J.B.Conant
Synonyms: see strong