Other forms: adherents
An adherent is a committed follower of a cause. A loyal adherent, adherents of the faith, gathering adherents.
It implies belief rather than membership, which is why it is used of religions and of doctrines rather than of clubs. As an adjective it means sticking, and the Latin behind it means to cling to.
1nounadherentA committed follower of a cause.
“The religion has millions of adherents around the world.”
adherent is a follower.
Latin adhaerens comes from adhaerere, to stick to, from ad plus haerere, to cling.
Latin
adhaerēns
Old French
adherent
Middle English
adherent
English, today
adherent
Built from
From Middle English adherent, from Old French adherent, from Latin adhaerēns. From Middle English adherent, from Old French adherent, from Latin adhaerēns, present participle of adhaereō (“to stick to, cling”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA