CLOVE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does clove mean? 

• CLOVE (noun)
  The noun CLOVE has 4 senses:

1. aromatic flower bud of a clove tree; yields a spice

2. moderate sized very symmetrical red-flowered evergreen widely cultivated in the tropics for its flower buds which are source of cloves

3. one of the small bulblets that can be split off of the axis of a larger garlic bulb

4. spice from dried unopened flower bud of the clove tree; used whole or ground

  Familiarity information: CLOVE used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CLOVE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Aromatic flower bud of a clove tree; yields a spice

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Hypernyms ("clove" is a kind of...):

flower bud (a bud from which only a flower or flowers develop)

Meronyms (substance of "clove"):

clove (spice from dried unopened flower bud of the clove tree; used whole or ground)

Holonyms ("clove" is a part of...):

clove; clove tree; Eugenia aromaticum; Eugenia caryophyllatum; Syzygium aromaticum (moderate sized very symmetrical red-flowered evergreen widely cultivated in the tropics for its flower buds which are source of cloves)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Moderate sized very symmetrical red-flowered evergreen widely cultivated in the tropics for its flower buds which are source of cloves

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

clove; clove tree; Eugenia aromaticum; Eugenia caryophyllatum; Syzygium aromaticum

Hypernyms ("clove" is a kind of...):

spice tree (tree bearing aromatic bark or berries)

Meronyms (parts of "clove"):

clove (aromatic flower bud of a clove tree; yields a spice)

Holonyms ("clove" is a member of...):

genus Syzygium; Syzygium (a tropical evergreen tree of the myrtle family native to the East Indies but cultivated elsewhere)

Sense 3

Meaning:

One of the small bulblets that can be split off of the axis of a larger garlic bulb

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Synonyms:

clove; garlic clove

Hypernyms ("clove" is a kind of...):

ail; garlic (aromatic bulb used as seasoning)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Spice from dried unopened flower bud of the clove tree; used whole or ground

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Hypernyms ("clove" is a kind of...):

spice (any of a variety of pungent aromatic vegetable substances used for flavoring food)

Holonyms ("clove" is a substance of...):

clove (aromatic flower bud of a clove tree; yields a spice)

 Context examples 

Clove cigarettes contain nicotine and many cancer-causing chemicals that are harmful to both smokers and nonsmokers.

(Clove cigarette, NCI Dictionary)

A cigarette made of a mixture of tobacco and clove.

(Kretek, NCI Dictionary)

Clove oil has both analgesic and antiseptic properties and is commonly used to treat tooth and gum pain.

(Clove Oil, NCI Thesaurus)

You're a good lad, Jim, he said; and you're all in a clove hitch, ain't you?

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Garlic plants produce an underground bulb that usually is divisible into 6-20 segments, called cloves.

(Allium sativum, NCI Thesaurus)

An Indonesian cigarette made of tobacco and cloves.

(Kretek, NCI Thesaurus)

The oil extracted from the cloves of Allium sativum.

(Garlic Oil, NCI Thesaurus)

A herbal-based mouthrinse containing aloe, anise, ascorbic acid, clove, peppermint, spearmint and thyme, with potential anti-mucositic activity.

(Aloe/Anise/Ascorbic Acid/Clove/Peppermint/Spearmint/Thyme-based Mouthwash, NCI Thesaurus)

But I apprehend that we were personally fortunate in engaging a servant with a taste for cordials, who swelled our running account for porter at the public-house by such inexplicable items as quartern rum shrub (Mrs. C.); Half-quartern gin and cloves (Mrs. C.); Glass rum and peppermint (Mrs. C.)—the parentheses always referring to Dora, who was supposed, it appeared on explanation, to have imbibed the whole of these refreshments.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

It is made using a mixture of tobacco, cloves, and other ingredients.

(Clove cigarette, NCI Dictionary)