Etymologically
Log in

clove

Etymology and origin of the English word clove

History Permalink

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /kləʊv/ (UK); /kloʊv/ (US)[1]

Etymology

The spice is inherited from Middle English clowe, from Anglo-Norman clou de gilofre (“nail of the gillyflower”),[2][3][4][5][6] from Latin clāvus (“nail”),[2][3][4][5][6] so called from the shape of the bud.[4] The bulb segment is inherited from Old English clufu (“clove (of garlic), bulb”),[2][3][4][5][6] from Proto-Germanic *klubō “cleft thing”,[3][4] related to cleave “to split”.[3][5][6] The two words were much confused in Middle English.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

As a bulb segment, c. 1000;[7][3] as the spice, clowes de gilofre before 1200 and clove in 1225.[3][7]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century the spice word appeared alone as clowes, finally becoming cloves by the late 15th century.[3][4] The name was extended to the clove tree itself (1594) and to the clove-scented pink (1746–47).[7] The German word for garlic, Knoblauch, is a dissimilated form of a compound corresponding to “clove-leek”.[4] Clove is also a past tense of cleave.[2][5]

Timeline

  • c. 1000 – Old English clufu, a bulb segment.[7][3]
  • before 1200 – clowes de gilofre, the spice.[3]
  • 1225 – the spice.[7]
  • 1594 – the clove tree.[7]
  • 1746–47 – the clove pink.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The dried flower bud of a tropical evergreen tree, Syzygium aromaticum, used whole or ground as a spice.
  2. The tree itself, native to the Moluccas.
  3. One of the small sections of a compound bulb, such as that of garlic.
  • cloy
  • cloying
  • clove hitch
  • cloven
  • cleave
  • gillyflower
  • clavicle

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Clove.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/clove. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·