Tenacity

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Tenacity \Te*nac"i*ty\, n. [L. tenacitas: cf. F. t['e]nacit['e].
     See {Tenacious}.]
     1. The quality or state of being tenacious; as, tenacity, or
        retentiveness, of memory; tenacity, or persistency, of
        purpose.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. That quality of bodies which keeps them from parting
        without considerable force; cohesiveness; the effect of
        attraction; -- as distinguished from brittleness,
        fragility, mobility, etc.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. That quality of bodies which makes them adhere to other
        bodies; adhesiveness; viscosity. --Holland.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. (Physics) The greatest longitudinal stress a substance can
        bear without tearing asunder, -- usually expressed with
        reference to a unit area of the cross section of the
        substance, as the number of pounds per square inch, or
        kilograms per square centimeter, necessary to produce
        rupture.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  tenacity
       n : persistent determination [syn: {doggedness}, {perseverance},
            {persistence}, {persistency}, {tenaciousness}, {pertinacity}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  187 Moby Thesaurus words for "tenacity":
     adhesiveness, application, assiduity, assiduousness, balkiness,
     bigotry, bottling up, bulldog courage, bulldog tenacity,
     bullheadedness, clabbering, clamminess, cling, clotting,
     coagulation, cohesiveness, colloidality, commitment, concentration,
     consistency, constancy, corking up, curdling, decidedness,
     decision, decisiveness, dedication, definiteness, determinateness,
     determination, determinedness, devotion, diligence,
     dogged perseverance, doggedness, dogmatism, doughiness, durability,
     earnestness, endurance, engrossment, fanaticism, fidelity,
     firmness, fixed mind, fortitude, gameness, gaminess, gelatinity,
     gelatinousness, gluelikeness, gluiness, glutinosity, glutinousness,
     grit, grittiness, gumlikeness, gumminess, hardheadedness,
     hardihood, hardiness, hardness, headstrongness, heaviness, holding,
     holding in, incrassation, indefatigability, industriousness,
     industry, inflexibility, inflexible will, infrangibility,
     inhibition, insistence, insistency, inspissation, intolerance,
     intransigence, jellification, jellylikeness, keeping, lastingness,
     leatherlikeness, lentor, locking in, loyalty, maintenance,
     mettlesomeness, mucilaginousness, mulishness, nerviness, obduracy,
     obstinacy, obstinateness, opinionatedness, overzealousness,
     pastiness, patience, patience of Job, permanence, perseverance,
     persistence, persistency, pertinaciousness, pertinacity,
     pigheadedness, plodding, pluckiness, plugging, power, prehension,
     preoccupation, preservation, purpose, purposefulness,
     relentlessness, repression, resilience, resistance, resoluteness,
     resolution, resolve, resolvedness, restiveness, retainment,
     retention, retentiveness, retentivity, rigidity, ropiness, sand,
     sedulity, sedulousness, self-will, seriousness, sincerity,
     single-mindedness, singleness of purpose, slabbiness, sliminess,
     slogging, snugness, spissitude, spunkiness, stability, stamina,
     staunchness, staying power, steadfastness, steadiness,
     stick-to-itiveness, stickiness, stiff neck, stiff-neckedness,
     stiffness, stodginess, strength, stringiness, strongheadness,
     stubbornness, sulkiness, sullenness, suppression, syrupiness,
     tackiness, tenaciousness, thickening, thickness, tightness,
     tirelessness, total commitment, toughness, treacliness,
     unbreakability, unbreakableness, uncompromisingness,
     uncooperativeness, unregenerateness, unremittingness,
     unswerving attention, viscidity, viscosity, viscousness, vitality,
     will, willfulness
  
  

From THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY ((C)1911 Released April 15 1993) [devils]:

  TENACITY, n.  A certain quality of the human hand in its relation to
  the coin of the realm.  It attains its highest development in the hand
  of authority and is considered a serviceable equipment for a career in
  politics.  The following illustrative lines were written of a
  Californian gentleman in high political preferment, who has passed to
  his accounting:
  
      Of such tenacity his grip
      That nothing from his hand can slip.
      Well-buttered eels you may o'erwhelm
      In tubs of liquid slippery-elm
      In vain -- from his detaining pinch
      They cannot struggle half an inch!
      'Tis lucky that he so is planned
      That breath he draws not with his hand,
      For if he did, so great his greed
      He'd draw his last with eager speed.
      Nay, that were well, you say.  Not so
      He'd draw but never let it go!