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Definition of cave noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

cave

noun
 
 
/keɪv/
 
/keɪv/
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  1. a large hole in the side of a hill or cliff or under the ground
    • the mouth (= the entrance) of the cave
    • The area contains vast underground cave systems.
    • a cave-dweller (= a person who lives in a cave)
    • We took shelter in a dark cave.
    • a collapsed limestone cave
    see also Aladdin’s cave, man caveTopics Geographyb2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • deep
    • large
    • shallow
    • …
    verb + cave
    • explore
    cave + verb
    • collapse
    cave + noun
    • ceiling
    • entrance
    • floor
    • …
    preposition
    • in a/​the cave
    phrases
    • the ceiling of a cave
    • the floor of a cave
    • the roof of a cave
    • …
    See full entry
    Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French, from Latin cava, from cavus ‘hollow’ (compare with cavern). The usage cave in may be from the synonymous dialect expression calve in, influenced by obsolete cave ‘excavate, hollow out’.
See cave in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee cave in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: cave

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