Library / English Dictionary

CLEAVE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: cleft    , clove    , cloven   

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation

Example:

The sushi rice grains cohere

Synonyms:

adhere; cleave; cling; cohere; stick

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "cleave" is one way to...):

adjoin; contact; meet; touch (be in direct physical contact with; make contact)

"Cleave" entails doing...:

attach (become attached)

Verb group:

adhere; bind; bond; hold fast; stick; stick to (stick to firmly)

stick (fasten with an adhesive material like glue)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "cleave"):

mold (fit tightly, follow the contours of)

conglutinate (stick together)

agglutinate (clump together; as of bacteria, red blood cells, etc.)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 2

Meaning:

Separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument

Example:

cleave the bone

Synonyms:

cleave; rive; split

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "cleave" is one way to...):

tear (to separate or be separated by force)

Verb group:

cleave (make by cutting into)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "cleave"):

maul (split (wood) with a maul and wedges)

laminate (split (wood) into thin sheets)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

cleavage (the act of cleaving or splitting)

cleaver (a butcher's knife having a large square blade)

cleft (a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin))

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make by cutting into

Example:

The water is going to cleave a channel into the rock

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "cleave" is one way to...):

create; make (make or cause to be or to become)

"Cleave" entails doing...:

cut (separate with or as if with an instrument)

Verb group:

cleave; rive; split (separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

cleft (a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin))

Credits

 Context examples: 

In turn, factor Xa/Va complex activates thrombin, which cleaves fibrinogen into fibrin, eventually resulting in blood clot formation.

(Antihemophilic Factor, Human Recombinant, NCI Thesaurus)

The protease-activated receptors PAR1 and PAR4 are cleaved by the protease thrombin, releasing a tethered peptide ligand that activates the receptor and triggers intracellular calcium release.

(Aspirin Inhibition of Platelet Activation Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Family of enzymes which use a metal ion in the catalytic process and preferentially cleave the Gln-Gly peptide bond.

(Metalloproteinase, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)

The disodium salt form of balsalazide, an aminosalicylate and oral prodrug that is enzymatically cleaved in the colon to produce the anti-inflammatory agent mesalazine.

(Balsalazide Disodium, NCI Thesaurus)

Presenilin-1 (PS1) is associated with gamma secretase activity that cleaves amyloid precursor protein (APP) and is implicated in Alzheimer's disease.

(Notch and Wnt Signaling Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

The classification is based on the specificity of the bond cleaved.

(Phospholipase, NCI Thesaurus)

This pathway map also shows the Entner-Doudoroff pathway where 6-P-gluconate is dehydrated and then cleaved into pyruvate and glyceraldehyde-3P.

(Pentose Phosphate Cycle Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/KEGG)

A rare congenital malformation characterized by micrognathia, posterior retraction of the tongue, and cleft palate.

(Pierre Robin Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

You're a good lad, Jim, he said; and you're all in a clove hitch, ain't you?

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

A rare syndrome characterized by the presence of omphalocele, anterior diaphragmatic hernia, sternal cleft, ectopia cordis, and ventricular septal defect or left ventricle diverticulum.

(Pentalogy of Cantrell, NCI Thesaurus)