calve

English edit

Etymology edit

From Middle English calven, from Old English *calfian, cealfian, from Proto-West Germanic *kalbōn, from Proto-Germanic *kalbōną (“to calve”), from *kalbaz (“calf”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian koolvje, Dutch kalven, German Low German kalven, German kalben, Swedish kalva, Icelandic kálfa.

Pronunciation edit

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kɑːv/
- Audio (Southern England) (file)
(General American) IPA^(key): /kæv/
Rhymes: -ɑːv, -æv
Homophone: carve (some nonrhotic accents, e.g. RP)

Verb edit

calve (third-person singular simple present calves, present participle calving, simple past and past participle calved)

(intransitive) to give birth to a calf
(intransitive) to assist in a cow's giving birth to a calf
(transitive) to give birth to (a calf)
(intransitive, figuratively, especially of an ice shelf, a glacier, an ice sheet, or even an iceberg) to shed a large piece, e.g. an iceberg or a smaller block of ice (coming off an iceberg)
The glacier was starting to calve even as we watched.
(intransitive, figuratively, especially of an iceberg) to break off
The sea was dangerous because of icebergs calving off the nearby glacier.

When an iceberg breaks off from a large ice shelf along an existing fissure, it looks like a large, flat rectangle. Typically, only 10 percent of an iceberg is visible above the water. As it calved, the iceberg may have been smooth and flat underneath, but ocean currents would have quickly changed it.
(transitive, figuratively, especially of an ice shelf, a glacier, an ice sheet, or even an iceberg) to shed (a large piece, e.g. an iceberg); to set loose (a mass of ice), e.g. a block of ice (coming off an iceberg)
The glacier was starting to calve an iceberg even as we watched.

Related terms edit

Translations edit

to give birth to a calf

Bulgarian: отелвам се (otelvam se)
Catalan: vedellar (ca)
Czech: otelit se pf, telit se impf
Danish: kælve (da)
Dutch: kalven (nl)
Esperanto: naski bovidon
Faroese: kálva
Finnish: vasikoida (fi), poikia (fi)
French: vêler (fr), mettre bas (fr)
German: kalben (de)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: kalve (no)

Nynorsk: kalva, kalve
Polish: cielić się impf, ocielić się pf
Russian: тели́ться (ru) (telítʹsja)
Sorbian:
Upper Sorbian: ćelić, woćelić so, ćelećić (rare)
Swedish: kalva (sv)

to assist in a cow's giving birth to a calf

to give birth to (a calf)

Dutch: ter wereld brengen
French: mettre bas (fr)
German: werfen (de)

to shed a large piece

Danish: kælve (da)
Dutch: afkalven (nl)
Finnish: poikia (fi)
French: se fragmenter, se scinder (fr), se morceler, se casser (fr), se fractionner (fr), se briser (fr)
German: kalben (de)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: kalve (no)

to break off

to shed, set loose (a mass of ice)

Danish: kælve (da)
French: perdre (fr), abandonner (fr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked