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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

claviform.

Larger at the tip than at the base; club-shaped.

9 characters3 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˈklævɪfɔːm/Received-Pronunciation/ˈkleɪ-/Received-Pronunciation/ˈklævɪˌfɔɹm/General-American/-və-/General-American
  1. Larger at the tip than at the base; club-shaped.

Where this word comes from

The adjective is derived from Latin clāvifōrmis (“club-shaped, claviform”), from Latin clāva (“a club”) (from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- (“to beat; to break”)) + -fōrmis (suffix meaning ‘having the form of’) (equivalent to -form, -iform). The English word is cognate with French claviforme. By surface analysis, clav(a) + -i- + form. The noun is probably derived from the adjective.

noun/ˈklævɪfɔːm/Received-Pronunciation/ˈkleɪ-/Received-Pronunciation/ˈklævɪˌfɔɹm/General-American/-və-/General-American
  1. An image or symbol which is club-shaped, that is, larger at the tip than at the base.

Where this word comes from

The adjective is derived from Latin clāvifōrmis (“club-shaped, claviform”), from Latin clāva (“a club”) (from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- (“to beat; to break”)) + -fōrmis (suffix meaning ‘having the form of’) (equivalent to -form, -iform). The English word is cognate with French claviforme. By surface analysis, clav(a) + -i- + form. The noun is probably derived from the adjective.

adj/ˈklævɪfɔːm/Received-Pronunciation/ˈkleɪ-/Received-Pronunciation/ˈklævɪˌfɔɹm/General-American/-və-/General-American
  1. Shaped like a nail (“a metallic spike-shaped fastener”).

Where this word comes from

From Latin clāvifōrmis (“nail-shaped, claviform”) (attested since 1677), from Latin clāvus (“a nail (metal spike)”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kleh₂w- (“a crook, hook; a peg”), + -fōrmis (suffix meaning ‘having the form of’), equivalent to -form, -iform.

adj/ˈklævɪfɔːm/Received-Pronunciation/ˈkleɪ-/Received-Pronunciation/ˈklævɪˌfɔɹm/General-American/-və-/General-American
  1. Key-shaped.

Where this word comes from

From or cognate to Latin clāvifōrmis (“key-shaped, claviform”) (documented since at least 1844), from Latin clāvis (“key”) (either from Ancient Greek κλείς (kleís, “something used to lock and unlock, a bar, bolt, key”), or directly from its etymon Proto-Indo-European *(s)kleh₂w- (“a crook, hook; a peg”)) + -fōrmis (suffix meaning ‘having the form of’), equivalent to -form, -iform.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.