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Glite Dictionary
to stave in

to stave in

7.7
To break a hole in something and make part cave in
  • phrasal verb
  • /steɪv ɪn/
translation icon : hundir
  • He used a hammer to stave in the rotten wood, creating a hole in the door.
  • staved in my skull
  • staved in with a rock
  • head staved in

Examples

  • To prevent barrel fever, Washington ordered all casks staved in.

    Academic text (1992)

  • During the storm, several houses had their roofs staved in by falling debris.

  • The side had been staved in.

    Smilla's Sense of Snow (1997)

  • "Each with its head staved in."

    Fiction book (1994)

  • "Are you going to stave in my skull?" Despite himself, his neck muscles contracted, already preparing for the blow.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • But who was to make the connection between three passes with the crop duster and all these staved-in roofs?

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Its facade has staved in the surface a splintered timber and a scatter of plaster.

  • He was working on power shots: his left hooks made a perfect L from shoulder to glove, staving in the bag on one side; his straight rights imparted the illusion of animate sensitivity to the bag as it leapt away from the impact.

    Academic text (2000)

  • The car hit the tree, and the front was completely staved in.

Synonyms

to crush
vsto stave in
401 1.6

To press something hard so it breaks or loses its shape

emphasizes breaking by impact and caving in rather than just pressing
to smash
vsto stave in
311 2.1

To break something into many pieces using great force

focuses more on making a hole or part cave in rather than general destruction
to kick in
vsto stave in
38 4.1

Force a door or gate open by hitting it hard with your foot

is not limited to foot impact and covers general smashing or caving in
to hole
vsto stave in
6 6.4

To make an opening in something by cutting or piercing

emphasizes violent breaking and caving in rather than any opening method
to stave
vsto stave in
6 8.5

To break a hole in an object by hitting or crushing it

is focused on crushing or making part of an object cave in
to smash up
vsto stave in
  • Informal
5 4.7

To damage something very badly so it breaks into pieces

is about a localized caving in or hole rather than total fragmentation
to break in
vsto stave in
1 3.5

To force open a door or window to get inside

refers to crushing or smashing to make a hole rather than forced entry

Antonyms

to repair
365 1.0

To fix something that is broken or not working

to reinforce
99 3.9

Make something stronger by adding support or extra parts

How Damaged

to collapse
579 3.9
to stave in
7.7
to smash
311 2.1
to break
∞ 1.0
to crack
311 1.0
to dent
27 2.2

Surface Forms

stave in infinitive
staving in present participle
staves in third person singular
stove in past
stove in past participle

Morphology

stave + in

The meaning 'to break or smash a hole in something' is directly compositional from 'stave' (to break in or crush) plus the directional particle 'in' indicating inward force. This verb + particle pattern is a regular English construction and is cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Stave in may come from barrels: the wooden boards of a barrel are called staves, and if you hit a barrel you can push those staves in, making it cave and break. That's why stave in now means 'to break or smash a hole in something'.