Cave — Defs

01 n. A hollow place in the earth, either natural or artificial; a subterraneous cavity; a cavern; a den.

1.
A hollow place in the earth, either natural or artificial; a subterraneous cavity; a cavern; a den.
2.
Any hollow place, or part; a cavity.[Obs.]
3.
A coalition or group of seceders from a political party, as from the Liberal party in England in 1866. See Adullam, Cave of, in the Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction.(Eng. Politics) See: Adullam, Cave of

Phrases & compounds

Cave bear — a very large fossil bear (Ursus spelæus) similar to the grizzly bear, but large; common in European caves.

Cave dweller — a savage of prehistoric times whose dwelling place was a cave.

Cave hyena — a fossil hyena found abundanty in British caves, now usually regarded as a large variety of the living African spotted hyena.

Cave lion — a fossil lion found in the caves of Europe, believed to be a large variety of the African lion.

Bone cave — See under Bone.

02 v. t. To make hollow; to scoop out.

imp. & p. p. Caved; p. pr. & vb. n. Caving

1.
To make hollow; to scoop out.[Obs.]
“The mouldred earth cav'd the banke.” — Spenser.

03 v. i. To dwell in a cave.

1.
To dwell in a cave.[Obs.]
2.
To fall in or down; as, the sand bank caved. Hence (Slang), to retreat from a position; to give way; to yield in a disputed matter.(Slang)

Phrases & compounds

To cave in — To fall in and leave a hollow, as earth on the side of a well or pit.