forcleave

F4O1R1C3L1E1A1V4E1

verb

to cut to pieces, hack, chop up.

OriginMiddle English forcleven →
Scrabble 17
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Meanings

verbforcleave (third-person singular simple present forcleaves, present participle forcleaving, simple past forclove, past participle forcloven)

present singular third person forcleaves · participle present forcleaving · past forclove · participle past forcloven

  1. obsoleteto cut to pieces, hack, chop up.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishforcleven“to cut to pieces”
  2. Englishforcleave

From Middle English forcleven (“to cut to pieces”), from for- (perfective prefix) + cleven (“to cleave, cut”).

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

forcleave. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forcleave

MLA

“forcleave.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forcleave. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “forcleave,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forcleave.

Source: forcleave on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.