Cleft — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin)

a long narrow opening

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/kjˈʊlɪsˌɪfjuːdʒ/

🇬🇧British English

/dɪstˈɛlfɪŋk/

🇮🇳Indian English

/dɪstˈɛlfɪŋk/

1 syllable Say it as /kjˈʊlɪsˌɪfjuːdʒ/.

Examples

cleave the bone
The water is going to cleave a channel into the rock
The dress clings to her body

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

split cling scissure stick dissected adhere crevice crack cohere rive cleave fissure

Parts of Speech

noun	a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin)
noun	a long narrow opening
verb	separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument “cleave the bone”
verb	make by cutting into “The water is going to cleave a channel into the rock”
verb	come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation “The dress clings to her body”
adjective	having one or more incisions reaching nearly to the midrib

Word Forms

cleave	verb	separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
crack	verb	break partially but keep its integrity
fissure	verb	break into fissures or fine cracks
cleft	noun	a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin)
cleavage	noun	the act of cleaving or splitting
cleaver	noun	a butcher's knife having a large square blade
split	noun	the act of rending or ripping or splitting something
splitter	noun	a laborer who splits logs to build split-rail fences
adherent	adjective	sticking fast
adhesion	noun	the property of sticking together (as of glue and wood) or the joining of surfaces of different composition
cohesive	adjective	causing cohesion
coherent	adjective	sticking together
cohesion	noun	the state of cohering or sticking together
coherency	noun	the state of cohering or sticking together
coherence	noun	the state of cohering or sticking together

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

gespalten

ein Riss oder eine Vertiefung in etwas (wie dem Gaumen oder dem Kinn)

🇫🇷French

fendu

une fente ou une indentation dans quelque chose (comme le palais ou le menton)

🇪🇸Spanish

hendido

una división o hendidura en algo (como el paladar o el mentón)

🇮🇹Italian

fessura

una spaccatura o una rientranza in qualcosa (come il palato o il mento)

🇳🇱Dutch

gespleten

een spleet of inkeping in iets (zoals het gehemelte of de kin)

🇵🇹Portuguese

fenda

uma divisão ou reentrância em algo (como o palato ou o queixo)

🇷🇺Russian

расщелина

раскол или углубление в чем-либо (например, нёбе или подбородке)

India

🇮🇳Hindi

फांक

किसी चीज़ में दरार या गड्ढा (जैसे तालू या ठुड्डी)

🇧🇩Bengali

ফাটল

কিছুতে বিভক্ত বা ইন্ডেন্টেশন (তালু বা চিবুক হিসাবে)

🇮🇳Tamil

பிளவு

ஏதாவது ஒன்றில் பிளவு அல்லது உள்தள்ளல் (அண்ணம் அல்லது கன்னம் என)

🇮🇳Telugu

చీలిక

ఏదో ఒక స్ప్లిట్ లేదా ఇండెంటేషన్ (అంగిలి లేదా గడ్డం వలె)

🇮🇳Marathi

फाट

एखाद्या गोष्टीमध्ये फूट किंवा इंडेंटेशन (ताळू किंवा हनुवटी म्हणून)

🇮🇳Gujarati

ફાટ

કોઈ વસ્તુમાં વિભાજન અથવા ઇન્ડેન્ટેશન (તાળવું અથવા રામરામ તરીકે)

🇮🇳Kannada

ಸೀಳು

ಯಾವುದೋ ಒಂದು ವಿಭಜನೆ ಅಥವಾ ಇಂಡೆಂಟೇಶನ್ (ಅಂಗುಳಿನ ಅಥವಾ ಗಲ್ಲದಂತೆ)

🇮🇳Malayalam

പിളർപ്പ്

എന്തിലെങ്കിലും പിളർപ്പ് അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ഇൻഡൻ്റേഷൻ (അണ്ണാക്ക് അല്ലെങ്കിൽ താടി പോലെ)

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਚੀਰ

ਕਿਸੇ ਚੀਜ਼ ਵਿੱਚ ਇੱਕ ਵੰਡ ਜਾਂ ਇੰਡੈਂਟੇਸ਼ਨ (ਜਿਵੇਂ ਤਾਲੂ ਜਾਂ ਠੋਡੀ)

🇵🇰Urdu

درار

کسی چیز میں تقسیم یا انڈینٹیشن (جیسے تالو یا ٹھوڑی)

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

裂口

某物上的裂口或凹痕（如上颚或下巴）

🇯🇵Japanese

裂け目

何かの裂け目またはへこみ（口蓋または顎など）

🇰🇷Korean

갈라진

(구개 또는 턱과 같은) 무언가의 갈라짐 또는 움푹 들어간 부분

🇻🇳Vietnamese

khe hở

sự phân chia hoặc vết lõm ở thứ gì đó (như vòm miệng hoặc cằm)

🇹🇭Thai

แหว่ง

รอยแยกหรือการเยื้องในบางสิ่งบางอย่าง (เช่นเพดานปากหรือคาง)

🇮🇩Indonesian

celah

perpecahan atau lekukan pada sesuatu (seperti langit-langit atau dagu)

🇵🇭Filipino

lamat

isang split o indentation sa isang bagay (bilang panlasa o baba)

🇲🇾Malay

sumbing

belahan atau lekukan pada sesuatu (sebagai lelangit atau dagu)

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

شق

انقسام أو مسافة بادئة في شيء ما (مثل الحنك أو الذقن)

🇮🇷Persian

شکاف

شکاف یا فرورفتگی در چیزی (مانند کام یا چانه)

🇹🇷Turkish

yarık

bir şeyde yarık veya girinti (damak veya çene gibi)

🇮🇱Hebrew

שָׁסוּעַ

פיצול או חריטה במשהו (כמו החך או הסנטר)

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'cleft'?

The primary meaning of 'cleft' is 'a split or indentation in something (as the palate or chin)'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'cleft' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'cleft' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'cleft' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'cleft' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'cleft' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'cleft' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'cleft' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'cleft' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'cleft' in a professional email?

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Never

Would you classify 'cleft' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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