View synonyms for

cleft

[ kleft ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a space or opening made by cleavage; a split.
Synonyms: , , , , , ,
a division formed by cleaving. cleave.
a hollow area or indentation:
a chin with a cleft.
Veterinary Pathology. a crack on the bend of the pastern of a horse.

cleft

[ kleft ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

verb

a simple past tense and past participle of cleave ².

adjective

cloven; cleave; cloven; split; divided.
(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

/ ��ɛ�ڳ� /

verb

the past tense and a past participle of cleave 1

noun

a fissure or crevice
an indentation or split in something, such as the chin, palate, etc

adjective

split; divided
(of leaves) having one or more incisions reaching nearly to the midrib

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Word History and Origins

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

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Word History and Origins

Origin of cleft¹

Old English geclyft (n); related to Old High German kluft tongs, German Kluft gap, fissure; see cleave ¹

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Tony Wilmott, a senior archaeologist for Historic England, said Sycamore Gap got its name in the 1980s from the tree in the cleft of the wall.

From

She’s desperate to find a refuge for herself, “a cleft in the rock of the world” that she could hide in, as she tells him after her secrets have been exposed.

From

“It certainly happened to me,” said Schimberg, who has a cleft palate.

From

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

By late afternoon he was on rocky ground cleft with ravines.

From

clef cleft lip

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