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CLEFT

 - 11 dictionary results

cleft

1  [kleft]
–noun
1. a space or opening made by cleavage; a split.
2. a division formed by cleaving.
3. a hollow area or indentation: a chin with a cleft.
4. Veterinary Pathology. a crack on the bend of the pastern of a horse.
Use CLEFT in a Sentence
Origin:
1300–50; ME clift, OE (ge)clyft split, cracked; c. OHG, ON kluft; akin to cleave 2

Synonyms:
1. fissure, crevice, crack, rift, cranny, chasm, crevasse.

cleft

2  [kleft]
–verb
1. a pt. and pp. of cleave 2 .
–adjective
2. cloven; split; divided.
3. (of a leaf, corolla, lobe, or other expanded plant part) having divisions formed by incisions or narrow sinuses that extend more than halfway to the midrib or the base.
Origin:
see cleft 1

cleave

1  [kleev]
–verb (used without object), cleaved or (Archaic) clave; cleaved; cleav⋅ing.
1. to adhere closely; stick; cling (usually fol. by to).
2. to remain faithful (usually fol. by to): to cleave to one's principles in spite of persecution.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME cleven, OE cleofian, c. OHG klebēn (G kleben)

Related forms:
cleav⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

cleave

2  [kleev] verb, cleft or cleaved or clove, cleft or cleaved or clo⋅ven, cleav⋅ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to split or divide by or as if by a cutting blow, esp. along a natural line of division, as the grain of wood.
2. to make by or as if by cutting: to cleave a path through the wilderness.
3. to penetrate or pass through (air, water, etc.): The bow of the boat cleaved the water cleanly.
4. to cut off; sever: to cleave a branch from a tree.
–verb (used without object)
5. to part or split, esp. along a natural line of division.
6. to penetrate or advance by or as if by cutting (usually fol. by through).
Origin:
bef. 950; ME cleven, OE clēofan, c. OHG klioban (G klieben), ON kljūfa; akin to Gk glýphein to carve, L glūbere to peel

Synonyms:
1. halve, rend, rive.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To CLEFT
cleave 1   (klēv)   
v.   cleft (klěft) or cleaved or clove (klōv), cleft or cleaved or clo·ven (klō'vən), cleav·ing, cleaves

v.   tr.

  1. To split with or as if with a sharp instrument. See Synonyms at tear1.

  2. To make or accomplish by or as if by cutting: cleave a path through the ice.

  3. To pierce or penetrate: The wings cleaved the foggy air.

  4. Chemistry To split (a complex molecule) into simpler molecules.

v.   intr.

  1. Mineralogy To split or separate, especially along a natural line of division.

  2. To penetrate or pass through something, such as water or air.


[Middle English cleven, from Old English clēofan; see gleubh- in Indo-European roots.]
cleav'a·ble adj.
cleft   (klěft)   
v.  A past tense and a past participle of cleave1.
adj.  

  1. Divided; split.

  2. Botany Having indentations that extend about halfway to the center, as in certain leaves.

n.  

  1. A crack, crevice, or split.

  2. A split or indentation between two parts, as of the chin.


[Middle English, past participle of cleven, to split; see cleave1. N., from Middle English, alteration (influenced by cleft) of clift, from Old English geclyft; see gleubh- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

cleave  (2)
"to adhere," O.E. clifian, from W.Gmc. *klibajanan, from PIE *gloi- "to stick." The confusion was less in O.E. when cleave (1) was a class 2 strong verb and cleave (2) a class 1 verb; but it has grown since cleave (1) weakened, which may be why both are largely superseded by stick and split. Cleaver "butcher's chopper" is from 1483.

cleft 
O.E. geclyft (adj.) "split, cloven," spelling infl. by cleft, new weak pp. of cleave (1), from P.Gmc. *kluftis.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: cleave
Pronunciation: 'klEv
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: cleaved; cleav·ing
: to subject to chemicalcleavage cleaved by an enzyme>

Main Entry: cleft
Pronunciation: 'kleft
Function: noun
1 : a usually abnormal fissure or opening especially when resulting from failure of parts tofuse during embryonic development
2 : a usually V-shaped indented formation : a hollow between ridges or protuberances cleft of the human body>
3 : the hollow space between the two branches of the frog or the frog and bars or between the bulbs of the heel of a horse's hoof
4 : a crack on the bend of thepastern of a horse
5 : a division of the cleft foot of an animal
6 : SYNAPTICCLEFT
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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cleft (klěft)
n.
A split or fissure between two parts.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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