Cleavable

cleave ¹  (klv)

v. cleft (klft) or cleaved or clove (klv), cleft or cleaved or clo·ven (klvn), cleav·ing, cleaves

v.tr.

1. To split with or as if with a sharp instrument. See Synonyms at tear¹.

2. To make or accomplish by or as if by cutting: cleave a path through the ice.

3. To pierce or penetrate: The wings cleaved the foggy air.

4. Chemistry To split (a complex molecule) into simpler molecules.

v.intr.

1. Mineralogy To split or separate, especially along a natural line of division.

2. To penetrate or pass through something, such as water or air.

---

[Middle English cleven, from Old English clofan; see gleubh- in Indo-European roots.]

---

cleava·ble adj.

---

cleave ²  (klv)

intr.v. cleaved, cleav·ing, cleaves

1. To adhere, cling, or stick fast.

2. To be faithful: cleave to one's principles.

---

[Middle English cleven, from Old English cleofian.]

Thesaurus

Adj.

1.

cleavable - capable of being cleaved divisible - capable of being or liable to be divided or separated; "even numbers are divisible by two"; "the Americans fought a bloody war to prove that their nation is not divisible"