clave

1 of 2

past tense of cleave

: one of a pair of cylindrical hardwood sticks that are used as a percussion instrument

Examples of clave in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
This is a great episode to learn more about Cuba, their citizens, and to see O’Brien get very drunk and find his clave. Ian Goldstein, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2024 The sharp sound of clacking claves accompanies Mortensen’s character in the present day, hunting down the man who preyed on his wife during his military absence. Tim Greiving, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2024 He’s made his own mind-expanding New York connections, playing with Cuban pianist Axel Tosca and Puerto Rican bass maestro John Benitez, whose music has been steeped in kindred rhythms defined by clave, the fundamental Afro-Cuban rhythmic pattern. Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, 7 May 2024 Hints of Cuban clave rhythms, Tin Pan Alley harmonies, Jewish melodies and piano licks swim through its overarching Romantic theme. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2024 The great-grandfathers could be said to resemble fiendish claves. Jay Pilgreen, Kansas City Star, 12 Feb. 2024 Man, execute break time; execute flipping the beat; execute Latin grooves; execute clave beats; African rhythms. Jordan A. Rothacker, SPIN, 20 Dec. 2023 The sound of the clave plays across Brooklyn on a windy Friday night in September. Damaly Gonzalez, Rolling Stone, 26 Oct. 2023 Also the name of an instrument on which the ubiquitous beat is played, the clave is most closely associated with Afro-Cuban music. Dallas News, 14 Feb. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clave.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

American Spanish, from Spanish, keystone, clef, from Latin clavis

First Known Use

Noun

1928, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of clave was in 1928

Dictionary Entries Near clave

Cite this Entry

“Clave.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clave. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.

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