WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Cleave, v. i. [.. Cleaved (, Clave (
Part of Speech : (Obs.);
Etymology : [OE. cleovien, clivien, cliven, AS. cleofian, clifian; akin to OS. klibon, G. kleben, LG. kliven, D. kleven, Dan. kl?be, Sw. klibba, and also to G. kleiben to cleve, paste, Icel. klifa to climb. Cf. Climb.]
Definition : 1. To adhere closely; to stick; to hold fast; to cling. My bones cleave to my skin. Ps. cii. 5. The diseases of Egypt . . . shall cleave unto thee. Deut. xxviii. 60. Sophistry cleaves close to and protects Sin's rotten trunk, concealing its defects. Cowper.

2. To unite or be united closely in interest or affection; to adhere with strong attachment. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife. Gen. ii. 24. Cleave unto the Lord your God. Josh. xxiii. 8.

3. To fit; to be adapted; to assimilate. [Poetic.] New honors come upon him, Like our strange garments, cleave not to their mold But with the aid of use. Shak.

p. p. Cleaved; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaving.]
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913

Pronunciation : Cleave, v. t. [imp. Cleft, Clave (, Clove (, (Obsolescent); p. p. Cleft
Part of Speech : Cleaved
Etymology : [OE. cleoven, cleven, AS. cle?fan; akin to OS. klioban, D. klooven, G. klieben, Icel. kljufa, Sw. klyfva, Dan. kl?ve and prob. to Gr. glubere to peel. Cf. Cleft.]
Definition : 1. To part or divide by force; to split or rive; to cut. O Hamlet, thou hast cleft my heart in twain. Shak.

2. To pert or open naturally; to divide. Every beast that parteth the hoof, and cleaveth the cleft into two claws. Deut. xiv. 6.

( or Cloven (; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaving.]
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913

Pronunciation : Cleave
Part of Speech : v.
Definition : Defn: To part; to open; to crack; to separate; as parts of bodies; as, the ground cleaves by frost. The Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst. Zech. xiv. 4.

i.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913