greave
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greave¹
- /ɡɹiːv/
Sounds like grieve · Rhymes with -iːv
Where it comes from
From Middle English greve, from Old English grǣfe, grǣfa (“bush, bramble, grove, thicket, copse, brush-wood (for burning), fuel”).
Cognate with Scots greve, greave (“grove”). Compare also Proto-Germanic *grainiz (“twig”), of unknown origin, whence Old Norse grein (“branch, bough”). Closely related to Old English grāf, grāfa (“grove”). See grove.
noun greaves
- A bush; a tree; a grove. she fled into that covert greave
- A bough; a branch.
greave²
- /ɡɹiːv/
Sounds like grieve · Rhymes with -iːv
Where it comes from
From Middle English greve, greyve, from Old English grǣfa, grēfa (“pit, cave, hole, grave, trench”), from Proto-Germanic *grēbō, an ablaut variant of to *grōbō (“pit, ditch”) (whence doublet of groove) , from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to dig, scratch, scrape”). Cognate with North Frisian groop (“pit, sewer, gutter”), Dutch groef (“pit, hole, gutter”), German Grube (“pit, hole”), Icelandic gröf (“pit, grave”). Also related to grave.
noun greaves
- A ditch or trench.
greave³
- /ɡɹiːv/
Sounds like grieve · Rhymes with -iːv
Where it comes from
From Middle English greve, grayve, from Old French greve (“shin”), of uncertain origin; possibly from Egyptian Arabic جورب (“stocking, leg cover”). Watkins suggests a connection with greve (“part in the hair”), due to the resemblance of the medial ridge to a part in the hair, from graver (“to part (the hair); engrave”), of Germanic origin, from Frankish *graban (“to engrave”); if so, related to Etymology 2 above.
noun greaves · greeve
-
A piece of armour that protects the leg, especially the shin, and occasionally the tops of the feet.
And through the stained windows bright, / From o'er the red-tiled eaves, / The sunlight blazed with colored light / On golden helms and greaves.
Similar: cnemid
greave⁴
- /ɡɹiːv/
Sounds like grieve · Rhymes with -iːv
Where it comes from
Back-formation from greaves (“residue left after animal fat has been rendered”).
verb greaves · greaving · greaved
- To clean (a ship's bottom); to grave.
Translations
Every language
noun piece of armour that protects the leg, especially the shin
| Español | greba |
|---|---|
| Português | greva |
| Français | grève |
| Deutsch | Schienbeinschutz, Schienbeinschützer, Schienbeinschoner, Beinschiene |
| Русский | поножи ponoži |
| العربية | دِرْع لِلسَّاقِ dirʕ li-s-sāqi |
Talk about this word "greave." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/greave. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. greave. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/greave "greave." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/greave.Cite this
@misc{greave_2026,
title = {greave},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/greave},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
