clive

From Middle English cliven, from Old English clīfan (“to cleave, adhere, stick”), from Proto-Germanic *klībaną (“to glue, stick”), from Proto-Indo-European *gleybʰ- (“to lubricate, stick”). Cognate with Dutch kleven (“to adhere, stick”), German kleben (“to adhere, stick”), Swedish kliva (“to climb, stalk”), Icelandic klífa (“to climb, ascend”).

clive (third-person singular simple present clives, present participle cliving, simple past clived or clove, past participle clived or cliven)

1. (intransitive) To climb; ascend.

From Middle English, from Old English clife (“clifers (cleavers), burdock”). Cognate with Middle Dutch kleve, klijve (“burdock”), Middle Low German klive (“burdock”).

clive (plural clives)

1. Burdock or agrimony.

From Middle English cliven, from Old Norse klyfja, klufða (“to split, chop, cleave”), from Proto-Germanic *kleubaną (“to split, pick”), from Proto-Indo-European *glewbʰ- (“to cut, carve, peel”). Cognate with Old English clēofan (“to cleave, split, separate”). More at cleave.

clive (third-person singular simple present clives, present participle cliving, simple past and past participle clived)

1. (transitive) To split; separate; cleave; chop.
   • 1990, John Ashurst, Francis G. Dimes, Conservation of building and decorative stone: Volume 1:

     After 'frosting' the stone may be 'clived' or split along the bedding planes. Once clived, the thin slabs are dressed for use and sold as Collyweston Slates, for use as tilestones.

   • 2007, Robert Ader, Psychoneuroimmunology:

     IL-1β presents the peculiarity of being produced in the form of a biologically inactive precursor, known as proIL-1β, that needs to be clived at an aspartate residue by a specific enzyme, named interleukin-1β converting enzyme (ICE) or [...]

• Homophones: clivent, clives

clive

1. first-person singular present indicative of cliver
2. third-person singular present indicative of cliver
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of cliver
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of cliver
5. second-person singular imperative of cliver

clīve

1. vocative singular of clīvus

clive

1. Alternative form of clyf