Cleave /(klēv)/

Cleave

v. i.

imp. Cleaved; p. p. Cleaved; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaving

  1. To adhere closely; to stick; to hold fast; to cling. [Obs.]
    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.
  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.

Cleave

v. t.

imp. Cleft; p. p. Cleft; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaving

  1. To part or divide by force; to split or rive; to cut. [Obs.]
    O Hamlet, thou hast cleft my heart in twain.
  2. To part or open naturally; to divide.
    Every beast that parteth the hoof, and cleaveth the cleft into two claws.
    — Deut. xiv. 6.

Cleave

v. i.
  1. 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.