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pave

[ peyv ]
/ peɪv /
||
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verb (used with object), paved, pav·ing.

to cover or lay (a road, walk, etc.) with concrete, stones, bricks, tiles, wood, or the like, so as to make a firm, level surface.

noun

Southern Louisiana. a paved road.

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RELATED WORDS

surface, tile, brick, gravel, tar, flagstone, cobblestone, macadamize

Nearby words

  1. pavage,
  2. pavan,
  3. pavane,
  4. pavarotti,
  5. pavarotti, luciano,
  6. pave the way,
  7. pavel petrovich,
  8. pavement,
  9. pavement artist,
  10. pavemental

Idioms

    pave the way to/for, to prepare for and facilitate the entrance of; lead up to: His analysis of the college market paved the way for their entry into textbook publishing.

Origin of pave

1275–1325; Middle English paven < Middle French paver < Vulgar Latin *pavare, for Latin pavīre to beat, ram, tread down

Definition for pave (2 of 2)

pavé

[ puh-vey, pav-ey; French pa-vey ]
/ pəˈveɪ, ˈpæv eɪ; French paˈveɪ /

noun, plural pa·vés [puh-veyz, pav-eyz; French pa-vey] /pəˈveɪz, ˈpæv eɪz; French paˈveɪ/.

a pavement.
Jewelry. a setting of stones placed close together so as to show no metal between them.

adverb

Jewelry. in the manner of a pavé; as a pavé: diamonds set pavé.

adjective

Also pa·véd, pa·véed. being set pavé: pavé rubies.

Origin of pavé

1755–65; < French, past participle of paver. See pave
Related formsun·paved, adjectivewell-paved, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pave

British Dictionary definitions for pave (1 of 2)

pave

/ (peɪv) /

verb (tr)

to cover (a road, path, etc) with a firm surface suitable for travel, as with paving stones or concrete
to serve as the material for a pavement or other hard layerbricks paved the causeway
(often foll by with) to cover with a hard layer (of)shelves paved with marble
to prepare or make easier (esp in the phrase pave the way)to pave the way for future development
Derived Formspaver, noun

Word Origin for pave

C14: from Old French paver, from Latin pavīre to ram down

British Dictionary definitions for pave (2 of 2)

pavé

/ (ˈpæveɪ) /

noun

a paved surface, esp an uneven one
a style of setting gems so closely that no metal shows
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

Word Origin and History for pave

pave

v.

early 14c., "to cover (a street) with stones or other material," from Old French paver "to pave" (12c.), perhaps a back-formation from Old French pavement or else from Vulgar Latin *pavare, from Latin pavire "to beat, ram, tread down," from PIE *pau- "to cut, strike, stamp" (cf. Latin putare "to prune;" Greek paiein "to strike;" Lithuanian piauju "to cut," piuklas "saw"). Related: Paved; paving. The figurative sense of "make smooth" (as in pave the way) is attested from 1580s.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper