cleave
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Etymology 1
From the strong Old English verb clēofan (“‘to split, to separate’”), from Proto-Germanic *kleubanan, from Proto-Indo-European root *gleubh- (“‘to cut, to slice’”). Cognates include dialectal German klieben.
[edit] Verb
to cleave (third-person singular simple present cleaves, present participle cleaving, simple past cleft, clove, or in UK: cleaved, past participle cleft, cloven, or in UK: cleaved)
- (transitive) To split or sever something or as if with a sharp instrument.
- (transitive, mineralogy) To break a single crystal (such as a gemstone or semiconductor wafer) along one of its more symmetrical crystallographic planes (often by impact), forming facets on the resulting pieces.
- (transitive) To make or accomplish by or as if by cutting: cleave a path through the ice.
- (transitive) To pierce or penetrate.
- The wings cleaved the foggy air.
- (transitive, chemistry) To split (a complex molecule) into simpler molecules.
- (intransitive, mineralogy) Of a crystal, to split along a natural plane of division.
[edit] Translations
- Vietnamese: rẽ
[edit] Noun
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Singular |
Plural |
cleave (plural cleaves)
- (technology, jargon) Flat, smooth surface produced by cleavage, or any similar surface produced by similar techniques, as in glass.
[edit] Related terms
[edit] Etymology 2
From Old English cleofian, from West Germanic *klibajanan, from Proto-Indo-European root *gloi- (“‘to stick’”). Cognates include German kleben (ankleben, bekleben).
[edit] Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to cleave (third-person singular simple present cleaves, present participle cleaving, simple past and past participle cleaved)
- (intransitive) To cling, adhere or stick fast to something; used with to or unto.
- (intransitive) To be faithful.
- To cleave to one’s principles.
[edit] Quotations
- 1611, King James Version of the Bible (Authorized Version)[1], Genesis, 2:24
- Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
[edit] References
- "cleave" at The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911.
“cleave” in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

