cleave etymology

Etymology:

• Middle English: cleven, cliven, from Old English clēofan "to split, divide"
• Ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic *kleubaną, *kleuban, meaning "to split, divide"

Meaning and Origin:

• Meaning:
  • To split or divide something into separate parts
  • To separate forcefully or decisively
  • To adhere firmly to something
• Origin:
  • The word "cleave" has been used in English since the 10th century.
  • It is cognate with words for "split" or "divide" in other Germanic languages, such as German "klieben" and Dutch "klieven."
  • The Proto-Germanic root *kleubaną is also the source of the English word "club," originally a heavy, cudgel-like weapon used for splitting things apart.

cleave relate terms

• clay

  Etymology The word clay comes from the Old English word clæg pronounced like cleg

• cleavage

  Etymology From Middle English clevage borrowed from Old French clevage 12th centu

• cleave

  Etymology Middle English cleven cliven from Old English clēofan to split divide

• cleaver

  Etymology The word cleaver is derived from the Old English word cleofan meaning to

• cleft

  Etymology The word cleft comes from the Old English word cleofan which means to s

• cling

  Etymology The word cling comes from the Old English word clingan which means to ad

• eclat

  Etymology French éclat brilliance distinction outburst Latin éclaircir to ma

• hieroglyphic

  Etymology Greek hieros sacred gluphē carving Meaning A system of writing

• clove

  Etymology The word clove comes from the Old French word clove or clou which means

• sleave

  Etymology The word sleave is derived from the Old English word sliepe meaning a par

• attach

  Etymology the study of the origin of words and how their meanings have changed over time

• adjoin

  Etymology From Middle English adjounen from Old French adjoindre from Latin ad

• agglutinate

  Etymology From Latin agglutinatus past participle of agglutinare meaning to glue