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Stave

 - 8 dictionary results
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stave

  [steyv] ,noun, verb, staved or stove, stav⋅ing.
Use Stave in a Sentence
–noun
1. one of the thin, narrow, shaped pieces of wood that form the sides of a cask, tub, or similar vessel.
2. a stick, rod, pole, or the like.
3. a rung of a ladder, chair, etc.
4. Prosody.
a. a verse or stanza of a poem or song.
b. the alliterating sound in a line of verse, as the w-sound in wind in the willows.
5. Music. staff 1 (def. 9).
–verb (used with object)
6. to break in a stave or staves of (a cask or barrel) so as to release the wine, liquor, or other contents.
7. to release (wine, liquor, etc.) by breaking the cask or barrel.
8. to break or crush (something) inward (often fol. by in).
9. to break (a hole) in, esp. in the hull of a boat.
10. to break to pieces; splinter; smash.
11. to furnish with a stave or staves.
12. to beat with a stave or staff.
–verb (used without object)
13. to become staved in, as a boat; break in or up.
14. to move along rapidly.
—Verb phrase
15. stave off,
a. to put, ward, or keep off, as by force or evasion.
b. to prevent in time; forestall: He wasn't able to stave off bankruptcy.
Origin:
1125–75; (n.) ME, back formation from staves; (v.) deriv. of the n.

Synonyms:
4. See verse.
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staff

1  [staf, stahf] ,noun, plural staffs for 1–5, 9; staves  [steyv] or staffs for 6–8, 10, 11; adjective, verb
–noun
1. a group of persons, as employees, charged with carrying out the work of an establishment or executing some undertaking.
2. a group of assistants to a manager, superintendent, or executive.
3. a member of a staff.
4. Military.
a. a body of officers without command authority, appointed to assist a commanding officer.
b. the parts of any army concerned with administrative matters, planning, etc., rather than with actual participation in combat.
5. those members of an organization serving only in an auxiliary or advisory capacity on a given project. Compare line 1 (def. 38).
6. a stick, pole, or rod for aid in walking or climbing, for use as a weapon, etc.
7. a rod or wand serving as a symbol of office or authority, as a crozier, baton, truncheon, or mace.
8. a pole on which a flag is hung or displayed.
9. something that supports or sustains.
10. Also, stave. Music. a set of horizontal lines, now five in number, with the corresponding four spaces between them, on which music is written.
11. Archaic. the shaft of a spear, lance, etc.
–adjective
12. of or pertaining to a military or organizational staff: a staff officer; staff meetings.
13. (of a professional person) employed on the staff of a corporation, publication, institution, or the like rather than being self-employed or practicing privately: a staff writer; staff physicians at the hospital.
–verb (used with object)
14. to provide with a staff of assistants or workers: She staffed her office with excellent secretaries.
15. to serve on the staff of.
16. to send to a staff for study or further work (often fol. by out): The White House will staff out the recommendations before making a decision.
–verb (used without object)
17. to hire employees, as for a new office or project (sometimes fol. by up): Next month we'll begin staffing up for the reelection campaign.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME staf (n.), OE stæf; c. D staf, G Stab, ON stafr staff, Skt stabh- support

Related forms:
staffless, adjective

Usage note:
See collective noun.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Stave
staff 1   (stāf)   
n.   pl. staffs or staves (stāvz)

    1. A stick or cane carried as an aid in walking or climbing.

    2. A stout stick used as a weapon; a cudgel.

    3. A pole on which a flag is displayed; a flagstaff.

    4. A rod or baton carried as a symbol of authority.

    5. A group of assistants to a manager, executive, or other person in authority.

    6. A group of military officers assigned to assist a commanding officer in an executive or advisory capacity.

    7. The personnel who carry out a specific enterprise: the nursing staff of a hospital.

  2. pl. staffs A rule or similar graduated stick used for testing or measuring, as in surveying.

  3. pl. staffs

    1. A group of assistants to a manager, executive, or other person in authority.

    2. A group of military officers assigned to assist a commanding officer in an executive or advisory capacity.

    3. The personnel who carry out a specific enterprise: the nursing staff of a hospital.

  4. Something that serves as a staple or support.

  5. Music A set of horizontal lines and intermediate spaces used in notation to represent a sequence of pitches, in modern notation normally consisting of five lines and four spaces. Also called stave.

tr.v.   staffed, staff·ing, staffs

  1. To provide with a staff of workers or assistants.

  2. To serve on the staff of.


[Middle English staf, from Old English stæf.]
stave   (stāv)   
n.  

  1. A narrow strip of wood forming part of the sides of a barrel, tub, or similar structure.

  2. A rung of a ladder or chair.

  3. A staff or cudgel.

  4. Music See staff1.

  5. A set of verses; a stanza.

v.   staved or stove (stōv), stav·ing, staves

v.   tr.

  1. To break in or puncture the staves of.

  2. To break or smash a hole in.

  3. To crush or smash inward.

  4. To furnish with staves.

v.   intr.
To be or become crushed in.
Phrasal Verb(s):
stave offTo keep or hold off; repel: "For 12 years, we've sought to stave off this ultimate threat of disaster" (New York Times).

[Back-formation from staves, pl. of staff1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

staff 
O.E. stæf "walking stick, strong pole used for carrying, rod used as a weapon" (also, in plural, "letter, character, writing," cf. stæfcræft "grammar"), from P.Gmc. *stabaz (cf. O.S. staf, O.N. stafr, O.Fris. stef, M.L.G., M.Du. staf, O.H.G. stab, Ger. Stab, Goth. *stafs "element;" M.Du. stapel "pillar, foundation"), from PIE base *stebh- "post, stem, to support, place firmly on, fasten" (cf. O.Lith. stabas "idol," Lith. stebas "staff, pillar;" O.C.S. stoboru "pillar;" Skt. stabhnati "supports;" Gk. stephein "to tie around, encircle, wreathe," staphyle "grapevine, bunch of grapes;" O.E. stapol "post, pillar"). Sense of "group of military officers that assists a commander" is attested from 1702, apparently from Ger., from the notion of the "baton" that is a badge of office or authority (a sense attested in Eng. from 1535). Meaning "group of employees (as at an office or hospital)" is first found 1837. The verb meaning "to provide with a staff of assistants" is from 1859. Staff of life "bread" is from the Biblical phrase "to break the staff of bread" (Lev. xxvi.26), transl. Heb. matteh lekhem.

stave  (n.)
"piece of a barrel," 1750, back-formation from staves (1398), plural of staff (cf. leaves/leaf), possibly from O.E., but not recorded there. The verb (to stave in, past tense stove) is c.1595, originally nautical, on notion of bashing in the staves of a cask and letting out the contents; stave off (c.1624) is lit. "keep off with a staff," as of dogs.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: staff
Pronunciation: 'staf
Function: noun
: the doctors and surgeons regularly attached to a hospital and helping to determine its policies andguide its activities
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

staff (stāf)
n.

  1. A specific group of workers.

  2. See director.

v. staffed, staff·ing, staffs

  1. To provide with a staff of workers or assistants.

  2. To serve on the staff of.

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