reaven.
/riːv/, /reɪv/, U.S. /riv/, /reɪv/ Archaeology.
A long low boundary wall or bank of a type found esp. on Dartmoor, in Devon.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > that which or one who closes or shuts > a barrier > [noun] > wall > low wall of turf or stone
dikec1425
stone-dike1553
snap-dyke1793
reave1848
1848 J. H. Mason in S. Rowe Perambulation of Dartmoor 130 In tracing the northernmost reave from Hamildon..we lost it in a tin-work.
1908 Times 1 Oct. 2/6 Minor antiquities, such as reaves, single hut circles, and cairns, are occasionally destroyed.
1976 Current Archaeol. 5 250/2 Four major walls on the moor... The walls were known as reaves in local dialect (pronounced ‘raves’).
1978 Antiquity Mar. 16/1 Dartmoor reaves..(the word derives from the Old English raew, meaning a row) are long, low banks, constructed mainly of stone, and often covered in vegetation. These may run for any distance up to 15 km, and they may reach 0·5 m or more in height.
1992 M. Atherden Upland Brit. vi. 105 Most reaves are in the marginal zone around the high moors, at altitudes of between 250 and 400 metres. Long parallel reaves lead up the valley sides to end in terminal reaves, running along the contours and encircling the central high plateau areas.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
reavev.1
/riːv/, U.S. /riv/α. Old English reafede, Old English reafode, late Old English ræfode, early Middle English ræuede, Middle English ræfde, Middle English reafde, Middle English reauede, Middle English refde, Middle English reued, Middle English reuede, Middle English revid, Middle English–1500s reved, 1500s–1600s reaued, 1600s 1900s– reaved, 1900s– rieved (Irish English); Scottish pre-1700 refit, pre-1700 revit, pre-1700 revyd, pre-1700 rewide, pre-1700 rewyt, 1800s reaved, 1800s– rieved, 1900s– reived.
β. Middle English raff (perhaps transmission error), Middle English raffte, Middle English rafte, Middle English raufe, Middle English ref, Middle English reff (perhaps transmission error), Middle English refft, Middle English reffte, Middle English reste (transmission error), Middle English–1500s raft, Middle English–1500s refte, Middle English–1600s (1900s– chiefly poetic) reft; Scottish pre-1700 refft, pre-1700 1700s reft.
Past participle.α. Old English gehreafad (Northumbrian), Old English gereafod, early Middle English iræued, early Middle English raefedd ( Ormulum), early Middle English ræfedd ( Ormulum), Middle English ireaueð (transmission error), Middle English irefed, Middle English ireyned (transmission error), Middle English refd, Middle English refede, Middle English renyd (transmission error), Middle English reued, Middle English reuede, Middle English reuet, Middle English reueyd, Middle English reuyd, Middle English revede, Middle English revid, Middle English revyd, Middle English rewede, Middle English yreaued, Middle English yreued, 1500s–1600s reaued, 1600s reauen, 1600s– reaved, 1800s riefed (Irish English), 1800s rieved (English regional (Northumberland)), 1900s– reeved (English regional (Hertfordshire)); Scottish pre-1700 reffit, pre-1700 refyd, pre-1700 reuin, pre-1700 revede, pre-1700 revit, pre-1700 rewid, pre-1700 rewit, pre-1700 1800s reaved, 1700s reif'd, 1800s reffet, 1900s– reived.
β. Middle English ireft, Middle English raft, Middle English rafte, Middle English rafth, Middle English rast (transmission error), Middle English reeft, Middle English refft, Middle English reffte, Middle English refte, Middle English yraft, Middle English– reft (now chiefly poetic); Scottish pre-1700 raft, pre-1700 refte, pre-1700 1700s–1800s reft, 1800s refted.
1. intransitive. To commit robbery; to plunder, pillage; to make raids. Now chiefly Scottish.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > spoliation or depredation > commit depredation [verb (intransitive)]
reaveOE
preyc1325
pillc1390
spoilc1400
spreathc1425
rive1489
poinda1500
to rug and reavea1500
to pill and poll1528
pilfer1548
fleece1575
plunder1642
spulyie1835
OE Wulfstan Sermo ad Anglos (Nero) (1957) 272 Hy hergiað.., rypaþ and reafiað and to scipe lædað.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4467 Þe sefennde wass..Þatt tu þe loke wel. þatt tu Ne stele nohht ne ræfe.
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 31 (MED) Þe mon wile gan to scrifte and segge þe preoste þet he haueð ireaueð [read ireaued] and istolen.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) 5279 Heo rupten, heo ræfden [c1300 refden], noht heo ne bi-læfden.
c1330 (?a1300) Guy of Warwick (Auch.) p. 420 (MED) To Ierusalem þai com ful ȝore To rob & reue wiþ pride.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 6477 (MED) Lok þat þou ne reue ne stele.
1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xvi. 551 Thai..Tuk land, and fast begouth to reif.
?1520 A. Barclay tr. Sallust Cron. Warre agaynst Iugurth xxvii. f. 37 Euery man..robbyng and reauynge without measure, from the commen wele.
a1585 A. Montgomerie Flyting with Polwart (Tullibardine) in Poems (2000) I. 154 To teich that theif to steill and rave.
1607 R. C. tr. H. Estienne World of Wonders 48 The Church from liue and dead doth reaue.
1761 W. Forbes Domine Deposed (new ed.) 21 You know I neither stole nor reft.
1786 R. Burns Poems 64 To slink thro' slaps, an' reave an' steal, At stacks o' pease.
1851 J. R. Lowell Anti-apis in Poems Thor the strong could reave and steal.
1864 J. H. Burton Scot Abroad I. ii. 62 A troop of bare-legged ruffians, who rieved and ravaged far and near.
1904 M. Hewlett Road in Tuscany I. viii. 222 God knows where he may be now—robbing and reiving with Uguccione della Faggiuola, the wild Aretine; dicing in Milan [etc.].
1939 J. R. Reinhard tr. P. L. de Ayala in Mediaeval Pageant lxiv. 312 Like their predecessors, the Berbers under Tarif spread over the neighbouring country, reiving, killing and taking prisoners.
1999 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 31 Mar. 32 To have a team called the Edinburgh Reivers is nonsense, as nobody from Edinburgh ever reived.
2. † b. transitive. To rob (a place or district) of goods or valuables by force; to raid. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To deprive or strip (a person or group of people) of something by force, to rob; (also) to despoil. Also figurative. rare after 17th cent.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (transitive)] > seize by robbery
reaveOE
robc1325
blag1933
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > spoliation or depredation > despoil or prey upon [verb (transitive)]
reaveOE
stripa1225
pill?c1225
robc1225
peela1250
despoil1297
raimc1300
spoilc1330
spoila1340
to pull a finch (also pigeon, plover, etc.)c1387
despoil1393
preya1400
spoila1400
spulyiea1400
unspoila1400
riflec1400
poll1490
to pill and poll1528
to poll and pill1528
exspoila1530
pilyie1539
devour?1542
plume1571
rive1572
bepill1574
fleece1575
to prey over1576
pread1577
disvaledge1598
despoliate1607
to make spoil of1613
expilate1624
to peel and poll1641
depredate1651
violatea1657
disvalise1672
to pick feathers off (a person)1677
to make stroy of1682
spoliate1699
pilfer1714
snabble1725
rump1815
vampire1832
sweat1847
ploat1855
vampirize1888
OE Beowulf (2008) 2985 Þenden reafode rinc oðerne, nam on Ongenðio irenbyrnan.
OE Blickling Homilies 63 Sume [sc. deman] myccle swiþor rihtaþ Godes folc þonne hie reafian earme & unscyldige.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1135 Æuric man sone ræuede oþer þe mihte.
c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 148 Twa þinges beoð þet godd haueð edhalden to him seoluen, þet beoð wurðschipe & wrake..Hwa se eauer on him seolf takeð owðer of þeos twa he robbeð godd & reaueð [a1250 Titus reaues; a1300 Caius reaweð].
c1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Cambr.) (1966) l. 246 Ef þer comeþ eni man Biþinne þilke barbecan..He wule him boþe bete & reue.
a1400 (c1300) Northern Homily: St. John & Boy (Coll. Phys.) in Middle Eng. Dict. at Reven He..reft lele men in wode schawes.
?a1450 in C. von Nolcken Middle Eng. Transl. Rosarium Theol. (1979) 77 (MED) Wo to þam þat..schulde reue faderlez childere.
c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Law of Armys (2005) 86 A revare, yat set to reue him be the way.
a1500 (?a1475) Guy of Warwick (Cambr. Ff.2.38) 105 He made pees... Yf a man were chargyd wyth golde, He schulde fynde no robber hym to reeve.
1567 Compend. Bk. Godly Songs (1897) 9 Commit na thift, na man thow reif.
1606 Haddington Burgh Rec. 3 Jan. in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue at Ref(e Thair coburgess, being reft and pilleit be piratts.
1631 in W. N. Fraser Sir-Name of Baird 69 I will give my geir, but will not be reft.
1832 A. Cunningham Maid of Elvar iv. xxv. 63 Come ye to reave us and to rob?
2001 Hindu (Nexis) 21 Feb. The entire secular fabric of the democratic polity is under threat of being reaved and ravaged.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > sacking, raiding, or looting > sack, raid, or loot [verb (transitive)]
reaveOE
harrowc1000
ravishc1325
spoil1382
forayc1400
forage1417
riflea1425
distrussc1430
riotc1440
detruss1475
sacka1547
havoc1575
sackage1585
pillagea1593
ravage1602
yravish1609
boot-hale1610
booty-hale1610
plunder1632
forage1642
rape1673
prig1819
loot1845
raid1875
OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Mark iii. 27 Nisi prius fortem alliget et tunc domum eius diripiet : nymðe ærist ðone stronga gebinde & ðonne hus his reafað.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1087 Hi..woldan þa ðæne port bærnen & þet mynster reafian.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Þa ræueden hi & brendon alle the tunes.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) 563 Vtlaȝen hefden i-ræued [c1300 irefed] þat lond.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2802 Ge sulen..reuen egipte ðat is nu prud.
a1400 (?a1350) Seege Troye (Egerton) (1927) 824 (MED) Al my londes ben robbed and reued.
a1425 (?c1350) Ywain & Gawain (1964) 2253 (MED) My landes haves he robbed and reft.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 4826 (MED) Þe bischope..prayde him..forsake his paynym lawe..And haly kirke noȝt reue.
a1500 (c1465) in J. Gairdner Three 15th-cent. Chrons. (1880) 23 (MED) The Kynge off Scottes..robbed and revid the contre aboute Derham.
c1600 Diurnal of Remarkable Occurrents (1833) 143 He brint and reft the places of Mangerstoun and Quhittak, with diuerse vtheris houssis.
1870 J. Nicholson Idylls o' Hame 121 He reeves the nests o' helpless birds.
a1889 G. M. Hopkins Sel. Poems (2002) 34 To his own selfbent so bound, so tied to his turn, To thriftless reave both our rich round world bare.
1917 Irish Republic 13 Oct. in M. Laffan Resurrection of Ireland (1999) vi. 261 Who robbed and rieved your land? 'Twas England of the wily ways.
c. transitive. To deprive forcibly or rob (a person or place) of something. Also figurative. Cf. bereave v. 1. Now literary and archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > death > cause of death > cause death [verb (transitive)]
to be the death ofOE
slayc1000
reavec1230
dissolvec1374
visita1382
extinguish1540
expiate1594
to carry away1603
to carry off1679
devive1869
to settle the number of a person's mess1881
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of) > deprive forcibly
reaveOE
reavec1230
despoilc1300
ravishc1384
violatea1657
wrench1786
OE Poenitentiale Pseudo-Egberti (Laud) iv. ix. 51 Gif hwylc man reafað oðerne æt his dehter, bete wið þa freond.]
c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 167 As ofte as eani lecheð toward te & reaueð þe of þi mete, nult tu as ofte smiten?
c1300 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Otho) 4387 He wolde..refe me of þan lifue.
a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) 119 Ȝef þou reuest me of myne, y shal reue þe of þyne.
a1400 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Egerton) (1966) 295 (MED) She reft him of his lytel knyf.
c1480 (a1400) St. Christopher 658 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 359 Ane arow..rewyt þe king of ane ee-sycht.
1563 T. Sackville in W. Baldwin et al. Myrrour for Magistrates (new ed.) Induct. liii Pale death Enthryllyng it to reue her of her breath.
1567 A. Golding tr. Ovid Metamorphosis (new ed.) xii. f. 151v Amycus..began To reeue and rob the brydehouse of his furniture.
1610 G. Fletcher Christs Victorie 20 Though of present sight her sense were reauen, Yet shee could see the things could not be seen.
1627 T. May tr. Lucan Pharsalia (new ed.) xi. 503 With empty Standards reft of Companies.
1757 T. Gray Ode II ii. iii, in Odes 17 Reft of a crown, he yet may share the feast.
1793 T. Scott Poems 337 He reaves his wife o' cash an' claes, Then takes leg-bale, an' aff he gaes.
1807 Salmagundi 31 Dec. 262 How often, has innocence sigh'd; Has beauty been reft of its honour—its pride.
1813 W. Scott Bridal of Triermain iii. Introd. i. 117 A wild resemblance we can trace, Though reft of every softer grace.
1884 Ld. Tennyson Becket i. iii. 67 We fear that he may reave thee of thine own [eyes].
1927 V. Woolf To Lighthouse iii. iii. 237 She had a few moments of nakedness when she seemed like an unborn soul, a soul reft of body.
1995 W. A. Senior Stephen R. Donaldson's Chron. Thomas Covenant vii. 192 The merewives, sirens of the deep, reave men of their senses with their song so that they plunge into the water to their doom.
3. Also with away.
a. transitive. To take forcible possession of (something belonging to another person); to steal. Now chiefly Scottish.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > seizing > seize [verb (transitive)] > with violence or forcibly
reaveeOE
latchc950
seize1338
rape?1387
wrestc1426
extort1529
redeema1578
wreathe1590
force1602
extend1610
wrencha1616
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (transitive)]
reaveeOE
benima1325
berob1340
pelfa1400
distress1490
derob1546
heave1567
shrive1630
strubc1680
spung1719
to do over1785
strong-arm1896
make1926
heist1930
to take off1937
hit1955
to knock off1960
eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) lxviii. 5 Quę non rapui tunc exsoluebam : ða ic ne reafade ða ic onlesde.
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) viii. 247 Zacheus..forgeald be feowerfealdum swa hwæt swa he ær on unriht be anfealdum reafode.
c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 202 Þi luue..hit is forte ȝeouen..oðer hit is to sullen oðer hit is to reauin [a1250 Nero reauen] & to neomen wið strengðe.
c1300 All Souls (Harl.) 159 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 469 (MED) He maked pays among þe stronge men þat hi noþing ne reuede.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1969) Jer. l. 11 Ȝee ful out ioȝen & grete thingis speken, reuynge [v.r. reuende] awei [a1425 L.V. rauyschen; L. diripientes] myn eritage.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 1962 (MED) Ete o na best o kind vn-clene..Na o fouxul þat refes his liuelade.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) iv. l. 59 The hors thai reft quhilk suld ȝour harnes ber.
c1550 Complaynt Scotl. (1979) ix. 59 He..reft the goldin alter, the chandelaris of lycht, and al the goldin veschel.
1587 G. Turberville Tragicall Tales f. 43 It were a worthie deede..To murther him, and reaue his realme.
1609 J. Skene tr. Regiam Majestatem 14 The cattell, or anie other thing thifteouslie stollen or reft.
1686 G. Stuart Joco-serious Disc. 33 They'll reave his geuds if they can find 'em.
1768–73 W. Cole in R. Willis & J. W. Clark Archit. Hist. Univ. Cambr. (1886) II. 40 I observed all the Brass of Dr. Stokes's Monument reaved,..except a small Peice.
1808 W. Scott Marmion iii. Introd. 120 The last, the bitterest pang..For princedoms reft, and scutcheons riven.
1860 J. P. Robson Song Solomon iv. 9 Thou hes refted awa' my hairt, my tittie, my spoose.
1866 W. W. Skeat Ludlow Castle i. iii Crafty foemen long to..reave or spoil The herdsman's care, the peasant's toil.
1906 C. M. Doughty Dawn in Brit. V. xix. 130 Having reaved much corn, they lade their ships.
1955 Press & Jrnl. (Aberdeen) 7 July Rustlers would find it an easy job to reive a sheep or lamb in The Sma' Glen, for instance.
1997 Scotl. on Sunday (Nexis) 22 June 13 But the object in Westminster Abbey, reived by Edward I in 1296, may have been a hastily substituted fake.
b. transitive. To take (something) away from a person, etc., or out of a place, by force; esp. to steal. With from, †of, †on, out of. Now chiefly literary and Scottish.Usually conveying the idea of deprivation, but sometimes merely expressing removal or separation.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or detachment > detach [verb (transitive)] > with violence
reavelOE
sever1626
lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) xiii. 27 Se ðe hit [sc. gold] gaderað & on oðrum reafað.
a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 11 (MED) Detractio hatte an oðer senne, ðe reaueð godes luue of mannes hierte.
c1330 (?a1300) Arthour & Merlin (Auch.) (1973) 4967 (MED) Þai..deden of his armes on hast, Forto haue anon yreued His bodi fram his gentil heued.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xvi. 89 To go robbe þat raggeman and reue þe fruit fro hym.
c1405 (c1375) G. Chaucer Monk's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 103 He golden Apples rafte of the dragoun.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) xi. l. 484 I mycht reiff..Fra the thi crowne off this regioun.
a1500 (?c1400) Earl of Toulous 28 in W. H. French & C. B. Hale Middle Eng. Metrical Romances (1930) I. 384 (MED) He had rafte owt of hys honde Thre c poundys worth be yere of londe.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iii. iii. 95 The rane and roik reft fra ws sicht of hevin.
c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy 7680 He..The right arme, with a rappe, reft fro þe shuldurs.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. i. sig. A6v From her body..He raft her hatefull heade without remorse.
a1599 R. Rollock Sel. Wks. (1844) II. vii. 84 They would climb up to heaven and rave it from God.
1606 G. W. tr. Justinus Hist. xxxix. 125 Hauing giuen commaundement to haue the Image of Iupiter reft out of the Temple also.
a1638 J. Mede Wks. (1672) 311 The wicked shall be condemned at the last day, not for reaving the meat from the hungry, but for not feeding their poor brethren.
1825 W. Scott Talisman viii, in Tales Crusaders III. 199 His soul should not have been reft from his body.
a1839 W. M. Praed Poems (1864) II. 290 The daily labour, and the nightly lamp, Have reft away..from him The liquid accent and the buoyant limb.
1884 Ld. Tennyson Becket i. iii. 50 There be among you those that hold Lands reft from Canterbury.
1910 F. H. O'Donnell Hist. Irish Parl. Party I. xv. 423 But why blame the Catholic Irish? It was an English Cabinet..which reft the guaranteed rights and possessions from their owners and usufructuaries.
1971 L. Eiseley Night Country iv. 54 The good Doctor Jekyll produced a potion and reft out of his own body the monster Hyde.
1999 Scotsman (Nexis) 22 May 38 The places where the old rogue hid the cattle he reived from the richer farmlands in the south just happened to include some of finest landscapes in all Scotland.
c. transitive. To take away (life, rest, sight, etc.). In later use chiefly Scottish. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of)
benimc890
to do of ——eOE
bedealc1000
disturbc1230
bereavec1275
reave?a1300
acquitc1300
benemec1300
deprivec1330
privea1382
subvertc1384
oppressc1395
abridgea1400
to bate of, from1399
lessa1400
nakena1400
dischargea1425
privatec1425
to bring outa1450
abatec1450
sever?1507
spulyie?1507
denude1513
disable1529
distrain1530
destituec1540
destitutec1540
defalk1541
to turn out of ——1545
discomfit1548
wipe1549
nude1551
disannul?a1556
bereft1557
diminish1559
benoom1563
joint1573
uncase1583
rid1585
disarm1590
visitc1592
ease1600
dispatch1604
unfurnisha1616
rig1629
retrench1640
unbecomea1641
disentail1641
cashier1690
twin1722
mulct1748
fordo1764
to do out of ——1796
to cut out1815
bate1823
deprivate1832
devoid1878
?a1300 Thrush & Nightingale (Digby) 154 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 106 (MED) Fowel, þou rewest al mi þohut.
c1330 (?a1300) Arthour & Merlin (Auch.) (1973) 9088 (MED) Þai hem þrewe wiþ spere and kniif And oþer armes, to reuen her liif.
?a1400 N. Bozon Contes Moralisés (Harl. 1288) (1889) 203 (MED) Who worthe hastynesse yat revyth mannys lyfe.
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) iii. 715 The wawys reft thar sycht of land.
a1500 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 15th Cent. (1939) 276 (MED) Gula is a grevys gall, He rayvith my rest one my bed.
c1550 Complaynt Scotl. (1979) viii. 58 My mortal enemeis purchessis to raif my liberte.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. i. sig. Nv Sith that false Traytour did my honour reaue.
1606 A. Craig Amorose Songes sig. Cvi Were it not wrong, if I should proudlie prease To raue thy right?
?1615 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Odysses (new ed.) Ep. Ded. Let Death then reave My life now lost in our patrician loves.
a1771 T. Gray tr. Dante in Wks. (1884) I. 160 For then Hunger had reft my Eye-sight.
1771 J. Beattie Minstrel: Bk. 1st xxxviii. 20 Fell chanticleer! who oft hast reft away My fancied good.
1872 J. S. Blackie Lays of Highlands 82 They shot..And reaved his purple life.
1906 C. M. Doughty Dawn in Brit. I. i. 26 Heremod, who, lo, cometh on, with bright dart, And bloody intent, to reave his foeman's life.
1955 T. Scott in G. J. Firmage & O. Williams Garland Dylan Thomas (1963) 116 I for ane, Daeth, Have lang grantet your pouer: Ye wha rieved the braeth Of mony a freend in war.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)]
atbraidOE
benimOE
fornimOE
to reach upOE
reaveOE
bilacchea1325
to take away1372
stealc1374
privea1387
beneme1387
reach?a1400
deprivec1400
subduce1434
embezzle1469
pluckc1475
fortakea1500
raima1500
devest1538
rig1573
imbolish1592
exact1660
drain1673
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > forcibly or suddenly
reaveOE
bereavec1320
atreachc1325
ravisha1398
reach?a1400
to catch awayc1400
rendc1450
ravena1513
pull1530
despoila1533
snatch1597
reap1634
extort1785
to pounce away1821
erept1865
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of) > deprive forcibly
reaveOE
reavec1230
despoilc1300
ravishc1384
violatea1657
wrench1786
OE Wulfstan Isaiah on Punishment for Sin (Hatton) 216 God bereafað & reafian læteð eowere dohtra heora gyrla & to oferrancra heafodgewæda.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4470 Ȝiff þu ræfesst me min þing Þu ræfesst godd tin sawle.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 8238 Himm wass þa þe kinedom Forr hise gilltess ræfedd.
c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Royal) (1981) 568 (MED) Eð were ure lauerd..toawarpen his unwine & reauin [a1250 Titus reauen] him his hondiwerc.
?a1300 Vision St. Paul (Digby) 155 in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1879) 62 404/2 (MED) So hy pinez..þat here duden þe widewe wou Oþer reueden wrecches here lond.
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 1220 (MED) Robbers..raft me fowe and griis.
?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) iv. met. vii. l. 4261 He [sc. Hercules] slouȝ þe lyoun and rafte hym hys skyn [L. Abstulit..spolium leoni; Fr. il ravi la despoille au..lion].
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Franklin's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 309 The brighte sonne loste his hewe For thorisonte hath reft the Sonne his light.
1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 7256 (MED) Þou hast me rafth..my knyht & eek my quen.
a1500 Partonope of Blois (Rawl. Poet.) (1862) App. l. 3204* A wyne I dranke..Thorwe whiche my wyt was me rafte.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1897–1973) 83 (MED) Then wold my hart be cold If sich a beggere shold My kyngdom thus reyf me.
1561 T. Norton & T. Sackville Gorboduc ii. i I meruaile muche what reason leade the kynge..to reue me halfe ye kingdome.
1594 R. Carew tr. J. Huarte Exam. Mens Wits xv. 274 To say, that Eue for her offence, was reft that knowledge which she wanted, cannot be auouched.
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. i. i. 25 He reaues him [sc. Job] all his Cattell.
a1625 A. Gorges in E. Farr Sel. Poetry Reign James I (1847) 315 When Tyme our styled yeare did end, And chaunge beganne your raigne, Then Time reft vs a soueraigne blisse, Which chaunge repay'de with gaine.
5. † b. transitive. To rescue or deliver (a person) by carrying off. With from, of, out of, or with double object (cf. sense 4). Obsolete.† c. transitive. To take away or remove (a person or animal) from a condition, activity, etc. Also figurative. Obsolete.† d. transitive. figurative. Scottish. To lift up (a person, a person's mind, spirit, etc.); to transport. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To take or carry away (a person, also occasionally a soul); spec. to carry off to heaven. Also with away, from, to, etc. Now literary and archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > remove or displace [verb (transitive)] > remove or take away
ateec885
withbreidec890
animOE
overbearOE
to do awayOE
flitc1175
reavec1175
takec1175
to have away?a1300
to draw awayc1300
weve13..
to wend awaya1325
withdrawa1325
remuec1325
to carry away1363
to take away1372
waive1377
to long awaya1382
oftakec1390
to draw offa1398
to do froa1400
forflitc1420
amove?a1425
to carry out?a1425
surtrayc1440
surtretec1440
twistc1440
abstract1449
ostea1450
remove1459
ablatea1475
araisea1475
redd1479
dismove1480
diminish?1504
convey1530
alienate1534
retire1536
dimove1540
reversec1540
subtractc1540
submove1542
sublate1548
pare1549
to pull in1549
exempt1553
to shift off1567
retract?1570
renversec1586
aufer1587
to lay offa1593
rear1596
retrench1596
unhearse1596
exemea1600
remote1600
to set off1600
subduct1614
rob1627
extraneize1653
to bring off1656
to pull back1656
draft1742
extract1804
reef1901
the world > movement > transference > [verb (transitive)] > convey or transport > off or away
atbearOE
reavec1175
heavea1240
ravishc1330
reachc1330
outbeara1400
trussa1400
remove1459
withberec1500
rapt1571
rear1596
rap1599
to carry off1684
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > kidnapping or abduction > kidnap or abduct [verb (transitive)]
reavec1175
ravishc1330
stealc1386
proloyne1439
rapec1450
abduce1537
rapt1571
spirit1657
kidnap1682
abduct1772
nobble1877
shanghai1919
snatch1932
the world > the supernatural > deity > heaven > [verb (transitive)] > convey to or place in
ravishc1330
to take upc1384
reavea1400
rap1599
ensphere1615
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 19825 Filippess wif..fra filippe ræfedd wass.
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 143 (MED) Huanne hi [sc. the soul] is y-reaued þanne to heuene, hi lokeþ ope þe erþe uram uer.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 17551 (MED) Reft [Trin. Cambr. Rafte, c1460 Laud Raft] awai for-soth es he.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 6463 (MED) He was fra þe erde reuyd, And in thoght to heuyn heuyd.
c1480 (a1400) St. Thomas Apostle 464 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 142 Þan cumys ded vnwenandly, & rewis þame al [a]-wa in hy.
1554 D. Lindsay Dialog Experience & Courteour l. 6280 in Wks. (1931) I Deith..rauis þame frome þare rent, ryches, and ringis.
1563 T. Sackville in W. Baldwin et al. Myrrour for Magistrates (new ed.) Buckingham 126 When the fates had reft that royal prince Edward the fowrth.
a1592 R. Greene Hist. Orlando Furioso (1594) sig. G2 A furie sure worse than Megera was, That reft her sonne from trustie Pilades.
1638 J. Milton Lycidas in Obsequies 23 in Justa Edouardo King Who hath reft (quoth he) my dearest pledge?
1721 A. Ramsay I'll never leave Thee i Tho'..honour should reave me To fields where cannons rair.
1817 P. B. Shelley Laon & Cythna viii. xxiv. 189 We are wretched slaves, Who from their..native land Are reft.
1876 Bulwer-Lytton's Pausanias (ed. 2) ii. iv. 134 Wouldst thou see my daughter reft from me by force.
1905 M. H. Austin Let. 15 Aug. in Literary Amer. (1979) 12 The Hebrews in captivity used to..sing about the glories of Jerusalem, from which they have been violently reft.
1925 C. H. Brewitt-Taylor tr. Luo Guanzhong Romance Three Kingdoms I. xxvii. 288 He journeyed toward his brother dear, too long from his side reft.
1990 D. Davie Coll. Poems (new ed.) 362 When Heaven and my hour Shall rule I be no more, Reft from my happy stay In common day.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > rescue or deliverance > rescue or deliver (from) [verb (transitive)] > rescue or carry off from
reavec1225
werea1500
snatcha1616
to fetch off1648
surprise1687
pluck1719
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxxvi. 261 Ure Dryhten..se ðe ælce dæg saula gereafað of ðæs ealdan feondes honda.]
c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Bodl.) 656 (MED) Ihesu..help me & of þis reade lei reaf [c1225 Royal ref] & arude me.
c1410 tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 193 But if he hadde bene sonner refte out [L. ereptus] of his handes, he hadde strangled hym.
c1440 S. Scrope tr. C. de Pisan Epist. of Othea (St. John's Cambr.) (1970) 14 Fro the bellue he hir delyuered, And with his strengthe hire from him reued.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) xvii. 20 He reft me fra my faes.
c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy 6838 Let vs reskew the Renke, refe hym his fos!
1550 Reg. Privy Council Scotl. I. 97 The said Capitane Skenestoun..reft the said Schir Robert fra thaim efter that thai had takin him.
a1649 W. Drummond Hist. James III in Wks. (1711) 56 If found guilty, they should not be reft from Justice by strong Hand.
ΚΠ
c1390 W. Hilton Mixed Life (Vernon) in C. Horstmann Yorkshire Writers (1895) I. 290 Whon þou hast had a gostli þouȝt..Ȝif hit..reueþ þe fro þi slepe a-niȝtes..þis is not wel.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xiv. 132 (MED) Allas! þat ricchesse shal reue and robbe mannes soule Fram þe loue of owre lorde.
c1430 (c1380) G. Chaucer Parl. Fowls (Cambr. Gg.4.27) (1871) l. 86 The derke nyȝt That revith bestis from here besynesse.
a1475 Sidrak & Bokkus (Lansd.) (Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Washington) (1965) 770 (MED) Þis wicche wiþ his wicchecraft..fro þi bileue haþ the rafte.
1623 R. Brathwait Shepheards Tales 10 How hard it was from error to be reau'd.
1665 R. Howard & J. Dryden Indian-queen v, in R. Howard Four New Plays 173 Till fit for armes, I reav'd you from your sport, To train your Youth in the Peruvian Court.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > violent emotion > cause emotion to be violent [verb (transitive)] > affect with violent emotion
transport1509
reave1556
import1652
enfrenzya1656
society > morality > virtue > morally elevated quality > elevate morally [verb (transitive)]
sublimec1484
reave1556
elevate1624
the mind > emotion > pleasure > joy, gladness, or delight > rapture or ecstasy > transport with rapture or ecstasy [verb (transitive)]
ravishc1390
rap1509
extol1526
exalta1533
reave1556
rape1566
rapt?1577
enravish1596
trance1597
to carry out1599
ecstasy1631
translate1631
elevate1634
rapture1636
ecstatize1654
enrapture1740
ecstasiate1823
ecstasize1835
1556 J. Knox Expos. Syxt Psalme Dauid sig. Evi Tyll byoperation of the holye Ghooste, we are rauished and refte vp too the contemplation of oure God, so that our myndes are fixed onely vpon goddes infinite goodnes.
1561 N. Winȝet Cert. Tractates in Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 8 Gospellaris and cunning in Scripture..reft vp in hie curiositie of questionis.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2009; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
reavev.2
/riːv/, U.S. /riv/α. Middle English reyve, Middle English–1500s (1900s– English regional) reve, 1500s reaue, 1500s–1600s (1900s– English regional) reave, 1600s reive; also Scottish pre-1700 reave, pre-1700 reif, pre-1700 reiue, pre-1700 reiv, 1800s reive, 1800s reyve, 1800s– reeve; Irish English 1800s reive, 1800s– reeve (northern), 1900s– reave (northern), 1900s– reef (northern).
β. Scottish pre-1700 raif, pre-1700 raive, 1800s ræive.
Past tense.α. Middle English raft; Scottish pre-1700 raifeit.
β. Middle English reft; Scottish pre-1700 1800s reft.
Past participle.α. 1500s refte, 1700s– reft; also Scottish pre-1700 reft.
β. Scottish pre-1700 raft, pre-1700 raifit.
1. transitive. To tear; to split, cleave. Also intransitive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > tearing or tearing apart > tear [verb (transitive)]
tearc1000
renta1325
reavea1400
lacerate?a1425
raise?a1425
rivea1425
shearc1450
unsoundc1450
ranch?a1525
rechec1540
pilla1555
wreathe1599
intertear1603
shark1611
vulture1628
to tear at1848
spalt1876
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 4490 A mikel rauen mi basket hent, Aboute mi heued he raft [Fairf. raue] and rent.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) 9110 He walde men raft [Vesp. raf] hit [sc. his body] al to duste.
c1480 (a1400) St. Machor 251 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) II. 8 Scho..with hyr newis reft hir brest.
1578 T. Proctor Gorgious Gallery sig. Fii My sighes from sobbing harte doth reaue my brest in twayne.
1590 R. Payne Briefe Descr. Ireland (1841) 6 Timber..so good to reaue, that a simple workeman with a Brake axe will cleaue a greate Oke.
1628 W. Mure Spirituall Hymne l. 237 in Wks. (1898) I. 154 The hardest heart of flint he reaves.
1660 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. III. i. 38 Finding a great tree with wedges in it, he set his hands and feet to it, trying to reive it a-sunder.
?1672 M. Bruce Serm. in Edinb. Tolbooth 2 That which will hunt them..till it raive the throat out of them.
1729 R. Savage Wanderer v. 111 Deep crack ye Rocks! rent Trees be whirl'd in Air! Reft at a Stroke, some stately Fane we'll mourn.
1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xxvii. 115 The patriot's burning thought..Of England's roses reft and torn.
1847 C. Dickens Dombey & Son (1848) xlv. 443 It would have been better to have seen its leaves and flowers reft into fragments.
1887 Pall Mall Gaz. 11 Nov. 7/1 The rock was reft asunder.
1895 S. R. Crockett Men of Moss-hags xxxii. 235 [A dog] ruggin' an' reevin' at the hinderlands o' him.
1924 H. D. Coll. Poems (1983) 165 I know not what to do, my mind is reft.
1947 O. Handlin & M. F. Handlin Commonwealth i. 31 By 1780 they were winning. Reft by divisions, ineffective and unskilled in their government,..they were nevertheless throwing back all the forces of a mighty tyrant.
2005 B. Webster in Globe & Mail (Toronto) 3 Dec. d8 Dangling icicles, dead squirrels, and trees reft by lightning.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)] > pull out or up > violently tear out or up
ruska1300
off-teara1393
ripa1400
whop14..
rivea1425
ravec1450
reavec1450
esrache1477
to plough out1591
uptear1593
outrive1598
ramp1607
upthrow1627
tear1667
to tear up1709
evulse1827
efforce1855
tear-out1976
c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 409 Þis diuinour..Ȝede him furthe..herbis to seche, Reft him vp be þe rotis.
1558 T. Phaer tr. Virgil Seuen First Bks. Eneidos ii. sig. C.iv Against them Troians down the towres and tops of houses rold, And rafters vp they reaue.
a1700 Christis Kirk on Grene (Laing) in Stud. in Sc. Lit. (1976) 4 133 The wives cam foirth & vp thay reft him & fund liff in the loune.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > breaking or cracking > break [verb (intransitive)] > shatter or break to pieces or burst
to-burstc893
forbursta1000
springOE
to-flyc1000
to-shootc1000
to-springc1000
to-drevea1225
to-resea1225
to-breakc1230
to go shiversc1275
to-drivec1275
to-rivec1275
to-shenec1275
to-wendc1275
debruise1297
lash13..
to-dashc1300
to-scatter13..
to-shiver13..
shiverc1330
bequash1377
shinderc1390
brasta1400
bursta1400
to-shiderc1450
to fly in pieces1488
sprent1488
splindera1500
reavec1560
dishiver1562
shatter1567
disshiver1586
split1590
slent1608
besplit1638
disrupt1657
splintera1661
rupture1734
explode1784
to ding in staves1786
to break, knock etc., or go, to smash1798
spell1811
to go (also run) smash1818
to play smash1841
bust1844
splitter1860
disrump1886
to fall into staves1895
smash1904
c1560 Disobed. Child (Percy Soc.) 6 Though ye crye tyll ye reve asunder I wyll not meddle with such a matter.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† reavev.3
Obsolete. rare.
1. intransitive. To poke or pry into; = rave v.3 2.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > be curious, wonder [verb (intransitive)] > pry
prya1350
toot1390
spyc1485
underpry1600
reave1615
nose1648
rave1671
poke1715
snoop1832
Paul-Pry1836
piroot1858
stickybeak1921
prodnose1954
1615 Sir G. Helwys in Buccleuch MSS (Hist. MSS Comm.) (modernized text) (1899) I. 161 Whether..I had got any inkling of this foresaid foul act or not, and if I had, whether he could perceive any desire in me to have it reaved into or not.
2. transitive. To draw out; to pull; = rave v.3 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)]
unteeOE
to take out of ——c1175
forthdraw?a1300
out-takea1350
to take outa1382
excludec1400
dischargec1405
to get outc1432
tryc1440
extraya1450
out-have1458
to take fortha1550
extract1570
reave1640
eliciate1651
roust1658
uncork1740
to put out of ——1779
to break out1840
1640 tr. J. A. Comenius Janua Linguarum Reserata (new ed.) xlvi. §504 Sometimes also he rips the seams, and reaveth..the threds.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2009; most recently modified version published online September 2018).
† reavev.4
English regional (northern and East Anglian). Obsolete.
transitive. Esp. of the wind: to tear off the roof or covering of (a house, etc.), to unroof; to tear off (a roof or covering).
ΚΠ
a1728 W. Kennett MS Coll. Provinc. Words (BL Lansdowne MS 1033) f. 339v/2 To Reve or Reove a house. To pull or tear off the thatch or covering from it. Westmorl[and].
1781 J. Hutton Tour to Caves (ed. 2) Gloss. 94/2 Reave, to blow off as wind does thatch.
1787 W. Marshall Provincialisms in Rural Econ. Norfolk II. 386 Reave, to unroof or disturb the roof.
1859 A. Whitehead Legends of Westmorland 39 The wind it sood sea hoarse an lood, An rwoar'd the trees amang, Then off the timmer, reuf'd the thack.
1866 J. G. Nall Great Yarmouth & Lowestoft Gloss. 632 Reave, to unroof a house, to blow the thatch off.
1878 W. Dickinson Gloss. Words & Phrases Cumberland (ed. 2) 78/2 Reùvv, to unroof. ‘T'wind reùvvt our haystack.’
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, December 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1848
v.1eOEv.2a1400
v.31615
v.4a1728