cave

[ keyv ]

/ keɪv /

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See synonyms for: cave / caved / caving on Thesaurus.com

noun

a hollow in the earth, especially one opening more or less horizontally into a hill, mountain, etc.

a storage cellar, especially for wine.

English History. a secession, or a group of seceders, from a political party on some special question.

verb (used with object), caved, cav·ing.

to hollow out.

Mining.

to cause (overlying material) to fall into a stope, sublevel, or the like.
to cause (supports, as stulls or sets) to collapse beneath overlying material.
to fill (a stope or the like) with caved-in material: sub-level caving.

verb (used without object), caved, cav·ing.

to cave in.

Verb Phrases

cave in,

to fall in; collapse.
to cause to fall in or collapse.
Informal. to yield; submit; surrender: The opposition caved in before our superior arguments.

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Origin of cave

1175–1225; Middle English <Old French <Late Latin cava (feminine singular), Latin cava, neuter plural of cavum hole, noun use of neuter of cavus hollow

OTHER WORDS FROM cave

cavelike, adjective

Words nearby cave

cavalry twill, Cavan, cavate, cavatelli, cavatina, cave, cave art, caveat, caveat emptor, caveator, cave bear

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for cave

The team at Mount Rainier was supposed to look for these snow caves at the end of the spring, after the animals have left but before the snow all melts.
Mount Rainier’s first wolverine mama in a century is a sign of the species’ comeback|Hannah Seo|August 28, 2020|Popular Science
Other broken-off cave growths had been wielded as digging tools.
Underwater caves once hosted the Americas’ oldest known ochre mines|Bruce Bower|July 3, 2020|Science News
The newly found items include stone tools and pendants made from cave bear teeth.
This cave hosted the oldest known human remains in Europe|Bruce Bower|June 12, 2020|Science News For Students
His team spends up to 12 hours each time it ventures into these deep caves.
The challenge of dinosaur hunting in deep caves|John Pickrell|May 19, 2020|Science News For Students

In response, the angry Amaterasu retreated into a dark cave, thus snatching away her divine light from the world, while the ever-boisterous Susanoo went away from heaven.
12 Major Japanese Gods and Goddesses You Should Know About|Dattatreya Mandal|May 6, 2020|Realm of History
Cast Angelina Jolie in that role with Brad Pitt as the cave hubbie, and maybe we have a blockbuster in the making.
Can Tarzan of the Apes Survive in a Post-Colonial World?|Ted Gioia|November 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The existence of the images—which resemble the styles and themes found in European cave art—has been known for some time.
The Oldest Cave Art May Not Be in Europe|Justin Jones|October 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It surpasses the paintings of horses and rhinoceros from the Chauvet Cave in France by 400 years.
The Oldest Cave Art May Not Be in Europe|Justin Jones|October 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Scientists have long thought that the oldest cave art was in Europe.
The Oldest Cave Art May Not Be in Europe|Justin Jones|October 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was dark, dank, the walls charcoal-colored, the feeling of a cave.
Fighting Back With Faith: Inside the Yezidis’ Iraqi Temple|Michael Luongo|August 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
More soldiers crowded into the cave and Professor-Commander Krafft came in behind them.
Sense of Obligation|Henry Maxwell Dempsey (AKA Harry Harrison)
No young Cave Swallows were taken and gonads of adults were in various stages of reproductive activity.
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula|Erwin E. Klaas
Profiting by this, Benjy quietly moved away round a colossal buttress of the berg, and took refuge in an ice-cave.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
It was a dangerous journey into this wonderful cave, but sometime Alila must go there, his father said.
Alila, Our Little Philippine Cousin|Mary Hazelton Wade
If there be any whose appearance denotes a more than common birth, treat him with due respect, and conduct him to my cave.
The Battle of Hexham;|George Colman

British Dictionary definitions for cave (1 of 2)

cave¹

/ (keɪv) /

noun

an underground hollow with access from the ground surface or from the sea, often found in limestone areas and on rocky coastlines

British history a secession or a group seceding from a political party on some issueSee Adullamite

(modifier) living in caves

verb

(tr) to hollow out

Word Origin for cave

C13: from Old French, from Latin cava, plural of cavum cavity, from cavus hollow

British Dictionary definitions for cave (2 of 2)

cave²

/ (ˈkeɪvɪ) British school slang /

noun

guard or lookout (esp in the phrase keep cave)

sentence substitute

watch out!

Word Origin for cave

from Latin cavē! beware!

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for cave

cave

[ kāv ]

A naturally occurring underground hollow or passage, especially one with an opening to the surface of the Earth. Caves can form through a variety of processes, including the dissolution of limestone by flowing water, the differential cooling of volcanic magma (which occurs when the outside surface of the lava cools, but the inside continues to flow downwards, forming a hollow tube), or the action of wind and waves along a rocky coast.

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