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Antonyms for cleave to


Grammar : Verb
Spell : kleev
Phonetic Transcription : kliv



Definition of cleave to

Origin :
  • "to split," Old English cleofan, cleven, cliven "to split, separate" (class II strong verb, past tense cleaf, past participle clofen), from Proto-Germanic *kleubanan (cf. Old Saxon klioban, Old Norse kljufa, Danish klöve, Dutch kloven, Old High German klioban, German klieben "to cleave, split"), from PIE root *gleubh- "to cut, slice" (see glyph).
  • Past tense form clave is recorded in Northern writers from 14c. and was used with both verbs (see cleave (v.2)), apparently by analogy with other Middle English strong verbs. Clave was common to c.1600 and still alive at the time of the KJV; weak past tense cleaved for this verb also emerged in 14c.; cleft is still later. The past participle cloven survives, though mostly in compounds.
  • As in cherish : verb care about deeply
  • As in cling : verb attach to
  • As in adhere : verb conform to or follow rules exactly

Synonyms for cleave to

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