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cleavers

[ klee-verz ]
/ ˈkli vərz /

noun, plural cleav·ers.

a North American plant, Galium aparine, of the madder family, having short, hooked bristles on the stems and leaves and bearing very small white flowers.
any of certain related species.

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Also clivers.
Also called catchweed, goose grass.

Origin of cleavers

before 1000; Middle English clivre,Old English clife burdock (-re probably by association with Middle English clivres (plural) claws, or with the agent noun from cleven to cleave1, whence the modern spelling)

Words nearby cleavers

cleavage product, cleavage site, cleavage spindle, cleave, cleaver, cleavers, Cleburne, cleck, cleek, Cleese, Cleethorpes
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to cleavers

foe, hatchet, river, knife, axe, meat ax

Example sentences from the Web for cleavers

British Dictionary definitions for cleavers

cleavers
/ (ˈkliːvəz) /

noun

(functioning as singular) a Eurasian rubiaceous plant, Galium aparine, having small white flowers and prickly stems and fruitsAlso called: goosegrass, hairif, sticky willie

Word Origin for cleavers

Old English clīfe; related to clīfan to cleave ²
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