cleavers
cleavers Lexical Profile
cleavers Game Scores & Validity
• noun
Plural form of cleaver: heavy, broad-bladed knives used especially by butchers for chopping through meat and bone.
"The butcher sharpened a pair of heavy steel cleavers before preparing the cuts of meat."
A sprawling annual herbaceous plant of the family Rubiaceae (Galium aparine), native to Eurasia and North America, characterized by whorls of narrow leaves and tiny hooked bristles on its stems and fruits that cling readily to fur and clothing.
"After walking through the overgrown meadow, the dog's coat was covered in sticky strands of cleavers."
Word Nuance & Usage
When referring to the wild plant (Galium aparine), 'cleavers' is plural in form but typically treated as a singular uncountable noun in grammar.
• Rhymes for cleavers
Word Origin & Etymology
The plant name derives from Old English 'clife' (related to the verb 'cleave' meaning 'to adhere or cling'), referring to how its hooked bristles stick to clothing and animal fur. The tool sense is the plural of 'cleaver', from Old English 'cleofan' meaning 'to split'.