pave

¹ American  

[peyv] / peɪv /

verb (used with object)

paved, paving

1. 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.

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noun

1. Southern Louisiana. a paved road.

idioms

1. 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.

pavé ² American  

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

noun

plural

pavés

1. a pavement.

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

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adverb

1. Jewelry. in the manner of a pavé; as a pavé.

   diamonds set pavé.

adjective

1. Also pavéd, pavéed being set pavé.

   pavé rubies.

pave ¹ British  

/ peɪv /

verb

1. to cover (a road, path, etc) with a firm surface suitable for travel, as with paving stones or concrete

2. to serve as the material for a pavement or other hard layer

   bricks paved the causeway

3. (often foll by with) to cover with a hard layer (of)

   shelves paved with marble

4. to prepare or make easier (esp in the phrase pave the way )

   to pave the way for future development

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pavé ² British  

/ ˈpæveɪ /

noun

1. a paved surface, esp an uneven one

2. a style of setting gems so closely that no metal shows

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Other Word Forms

• paver noun
• unpaved adjective
• well-paved adjective

Etymology

Origin of pave¹

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

Origin of pavé²

1755–65; < French, past participle of paver. See pave

Example Sentences

She saw it gleaming as she trudged along a paved road that hugs the fence, dropping her hiking poles the moment it registered.

From Los Angeles Times

He never realized his dream of becoming Hollywood’s first Black romantic leading man, but he helped pave the way for actors like Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Michael B. Jordan.

From The Wall Street Journal

He lifted the boat as if it were a wicker basket of fruit and pushed it out through the glassless window, onto the paving outside.

From Literature

Those experiences helped pave the way for Coinbase, which set about to solve a problem that confounded those eager to invest in cryptocurrencies: There was no place for people to store their digital assets.

From The Wall Street Journal

Once the law is signed off by the country's interim president, it is expected to pave the way for more foreign investment in the oil industry.

From BBC