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stave
[ steyv ]
noun
- one of the thin, narrow, shaped pieces of wood that form the sides of a cask, tub, or similar vessel.
- a stick, rod, pole, or the like.
- a rung of a ladder, chair, etc.
- Prosody.
- a verse or stanza of a poem or song.
- the alliterating sound in a line of verse, as the w- sound in wind in the willows.
- Music. staff 1( def 10 ).
verb (used with object)
- to break in a stave or staves of (a cask or barrel) so as to release the wine, liquor, or other contents.
- to release (wine, liquor, etc.) by breaking the cask or barrel.
- to break or crush (something) inward (often followed by in ).
- to break (a hole) in, especially in the hull of a boat.
- to break to pieces; splinter; smash.
- to furnish with a stave or staves.
- to beat with a stave or staff.
verb (used without object)
- to become staved in, as a boat; break in or up.
- to move along rapidly.
verb phrase
- to put, ward, or keep off, as by force or evasion.
- to prevent in time; forestall:
He wasn't able to stave off bankruptcy.
stave
/ steɪv /
noun
- any one of a number of long strips of wood joined together to form a barrel, bucket, boat hull, etc
- any of various bars, slats, or rods, usually of wood, such as a rung of a ladder or a crosspiece bracing the legs of a chair
- any stick, staff, etc
- a stanza or verse of a poem
- music
- an individual group of five lines and four spaces used in staff notation
- another word for staff 1
verb
- often foll by in to break or crush (the staves of a boat, barrel, etc) or (of the staves of a boat) to be broken or crushed
- trusually foll byin to burst or force (a hole in something)
- tr to provide (a ladder, chair, etc) with a stave or staves
- tr to sprain (a finger, toe, etc)
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Other Words From
- un·staved adjective
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Word History and Origins
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Word History and Origins
Origin of stave1
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Synonym Study
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Example Sentences
This vacuum-insulated, spill-proof option, which keeps your drink chilled for hours without refrigeration and staves off condensation, comes in a rainbow of colors.
Four weeks after the injections, all 20 of the participants had developed the antibodies needed to stave off the infection.
And how much do you need to sweat to stave off the disease that kills 500,000 people every year?
Will “loyalty cards” be enough to stave of a Republican massacre of House Democrats on Tuesday?
No surprise, therefore, that women are desperate to stave off the “visible signs” of aging.
Sure ASMR clips can put you to sleep and help stave off insomnia, maybe even get rid of that nasty headache you've had for days.
Groping around, I found a stout stick or stave, put my back to the wall, and beat about me blindly but with vigor.
Procure a good barrel with a bottom and cut off each alternate stave at both ends close up to the first hoop.
Mupugung (mupapugung) sa pulsu ang kindi, Candies will stave off hunger.
And sang a stave and drained a quart and called aloud for more.
The poor fellows were able to stave off starvation by visiting various free lunches during the day.
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