stave Definition
- 1a vertical wooden post or plank in a building or other structure
- 2a set of five horizontal lines and four spaces that each represent a different musical pitch
Using stave: Examples
Take a moment to familiarize yourself with how "stave" can be used in various situations through the following examples!
Example
The staves of the old barn were rotting away.
Example
The barrel was held together by iron hoops and wooden staves.
Example
She read the notes from the stave.
Example
He wrote the melody on the treble stave.
stave Synonyms and Antonyms
Phrases with stave
Example
The notes on the stave were too high for her to sing.
Example
He drank tea to stave off hunger.
Example
The car's roof was staved in by the falling tree.
Origins of stave
from Old English 'stafas', meaning 'staff' or 'stick'
Summary: stave in Brief
The term 'stave' [steɪv] has two main meanings. It can refer to a vertical wooden post or plank in a building or other structure, such as 'The staves of the old barn were rotting away.' Alternatively, it can refer to a set of five horizontal lines and four spaces that each represent a different musical pitch, as in 'She read the notes from the stave.' Other phrases include 'on the stave,' referring to musical notation, and 'stave off,' meaning to prevent or delay something unpleasant or dangerous.
