sheaves1

[sheevz] /ʃivz/
noun
1.
plural of sheaf.

sheaves2

[shivz, sheevz] /ʃɪvz, ʃivz/
noun
1.
plural of sheave2 .

sheaf

[sheef] /ʃif/
noun, plural sheaves.
1.
one of the bundles in which cereal plants, as wheat, rye, etc., are bound after reaping.
2.
any bundle, cluster, or collection:
a sheaf of papers.
verb (used with object)
3.
to bind (something) into a sheaf or sheaves.
Origin
before 900; Middle English shefe (noun), Old English schēaf; cognate with Dutch schoof sheaf, German Schaub wisp of straw, Old Norse skauf tail of a fox
Related forms
sheaflike, adjective

sheave1

[sheev] /ʃiv/
verb (used with object), sheaved, sheaving.
1.
to gather, collect, or bind into a sheaf or sheaves.
Origin
1570-80; derivative of sheaf

sheave2

[shiv, sheev] /ʃɪv, ʃiv/
noun
1.
a pulley for hoisting or hauling, having a grooved rim for retaining a wire rope.
2.
a wheel with a grooved rim, for transmitting force to a cable or belt.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English schive; akin to Dutch schijf sheave, German Scheibe disk
Examples from the web for sheaves
  • Scenes featured workers hefting hoes and spades, or farm maidens bearing sheaves and sickles.
  • Mechanical reapers became even more efficient when adapted to bale the stalks into sheaves, too.
  • Each angrily shakes at the other sheaves of valid examples of information spin and social policy influence.
  • Gathering in the sheaves of supporters is a large task.
  • Some tired-looking peasants are walking down a road at sunset, carrying sheaves of wheat.
  • There were sheaves of paper bull's-eyes for target practice, and rolled-up wall charts diagramming the use of artillery.
  • The shrill ring of the block-sheaves indicates a tension that is not far from breaking-point.
  • Whether mowed down by gunfire or dispatched by sheaves of blades, the bodies pile up in split-second blasts of carnage.
  • Stop at that first tourist information center with its sheaves of brochures promising lazy delights.
  • Serving customers for over a century, this venerable restaurant has racked up sheaves of reviews attesting to its quality.
British Dictionary definitions for sheaves

sheaves

/ʃiːvz/
noun
1.
the plural of sheaf

sheaf

/ʃiːf/
noun (pl) sheaves (ʃiːvz)
1.
a bundle of reaped but unthreshed corn tied with one or two bonds
2.
a bundle of objects tied together
3.
the arrows contained in a quiver
verb
4.
(transitive) to bind or tie into a sheaf
Word Origin
Old English sceaf, related to Old High German skoub sheaf, Old Norse skauf tail, Gothic skuft tuft of hair

sheave1

/ʃiːv/
verb
1.
(transitive) to gather or bind into sheaves

sheave2

/ʃiːv/
noun
1.
a wheel with a grooved rim, esp one used as a pulley
Word Origin
C14: of Germanic origin; compare Old High German scība disc
Word Origin and History for sheaves

sheaf

n.

Old English sceaf (plural sceafas) "large bundle of corn," from Proto-Germanic *skauf- (cf. Old Saxon scof, Middle Dutch scoof, Dutch schoof, Old High German scoub "sheaf, bundle," German Schaub "sheaf;" Old Norse skauf "fox's tail;" Gothic skuft "hair on the head," German Schopf "tuft"), from PIE root *(s)keup- "cluster, tuft, hair of the head." Extended to bundles of things other than grain by c.1300. Also used in Middle English for "two dozen arrows." General sense of "a collection" is from 1728.

sheave

v.

"to gather up in sheaves," 1570s; see sheaf. Related: Sheaved; sheaving. Earlier verb in this sense was simply sheaf (c.1500).

n.

"grooved wheel to receive a cord, pulley" (mid-14c.), also "slice of bread" (late 14c.), related to shive (n.).