cleft

¹ American  

[kleft] / klɛft /

noun

1. a space or opening made by cleavage; a split.

   Synonyms:

   crevasse, chasm, cranny, rift, crack, crevice, fissure

2. a division formed by cleaving. cleave.

3. a hollow area or indentation.

   a chin with a cleft.

4. Veterinary Pathology. a crack on the bend of the pastern of a horse.

---

cleft ² American  

[kleft] / klɛft /

verb

1. a simple past tense and past participle of cleave.

---

adjective

1. cloven; cleave; cloven; split; divided.

2. (of a leaf, corolla, lobe, or other expanded plant part) having divisions formed by incisions or narrow sinuses that extend more than halfway to the midrib or the base.

cleft British  

/ klɛft /

verb

1. the past tense and a past participle of cleave 1

---

noun

1. a fissure or crevice

2. an indentation or split in something, such as the chin, palate, etc

adjective

1. split; divided

2. (of leaves) having one or more incisions reaching nearly to the midrib

Etymology

Origin of cleft¹

1300–50; Middle English clift, Old English ( ge ) clyft split, cracked; cognate with Old High German, Old Norse kluft; akin to cleave ²

Origin of cleft²

cleft ¹

Example Sentences

Habermas was born with a cleft palate that required repeated operations as a child, an experience he later said helped shape his thinking about language and communication.

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

Schimberg, who became friends with Pearson during “Chained for Life,” also drew from his own experience with a cleft palate.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2024

He had the darkest eyelashes I’ve ever seen, short and tidy fingernails, and a cleft chin that could fit a Canadian loonie.

From Slate • Dec. 17, 2024

Take lamotrigine, for instance: In the early 2000s, animal trials indicated that it could increase conditions like cleft palate, but later studies found no such link, reassuring clinicians.

From Salon • Sep. 10, 2024

And she has a cleft chin and blue eyes, just like me.

From "Shouting at the Rain" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt