cleft
verb
[ klɛft ]
• past and past participle of cleave1.
cleft
adjective
• split, divided, or partially divided into two.
• "a cleft chin"
cleft
noun
• a fissure or split, especially in rock or the ground.
• "the third peak is divided from the eastern one by a deep cleft"
Similar:
split,
slit,
crack,
fissure,
crevice,
chasm,
opening,
rift,
break,
fracture,
rent,
breach,
gash,
cranny,
interstice,
furrow,
indentation,
gap,
hole,
pit,
void,
crater,
Origin:
Middle English clift : of Germanic origin; related to Dutch kluft and German Kluft, also to cleave1. The form of the word was altered in the 16th century by association with cleft1.
cleave
verb
• split or sever (something), especially along a natural line or grain.
• "the large axe his father used to cleave wood for the fire"
Similar:
split,
split open,
crack open,
lay open,
divide,
sever,
splinter,
cut (up),
hew,
hack,
chop up,
slice up,
halve,
bisect,
quarter,
rend,
sunder,
rive,
Origin:
Old English clēofan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch klieven and German klieben .
