clove

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)A very pungent aromatic spice, the unexpanded flower bud of the clove tree.
2. (countable)A clove tree, of the species Syzygium aromaticum (syn. Caryophyllus aromaticus), native to the Moluccas (Indonesian islands), which produces the spice.
3. (countable)An old English measure of weight, containing 7 pounds (3.2 kg), i.e. half a stone.

   “Seven pounds make a clove, 2 cloves a stone, 2 stone a tod, 6+¹⁄₂ tods a wey, 2 weys a sack, 12 sacks a last. The 'Pathway' points out the etymology of the word cloves; it calls them ' claves or nails.' It is to be observed here that a sack is 13 tods, and a tod 28 pounds, so that the sack is 364 pounds.”

   “By a statute of 9 Hen. VI. it was ordained that the wey of cheese should contain 32 cloves of 7 lbs. each, i.e. 224 lbs., or 2 cwts.”

4. One of the small bulbs formed in the axils of the scales of a large bulb.

   “clove of garlic, garlic clove, clove of a sea-onion, clove of shallot, cloves of bulbs”

5. A narrow valley with steep sides, used in areas of North America first settled by the Dutch

verb

1. (form-of, past)simple past of cleave