rive /ɹaɪv/verb 6noun 2forms 9 verb6 •To tear apart by force; to rend; to split; to cleave.I have seen tempests, when the scolding winds / Have rived the knotty oaks[…] — 1599 •To break apart; to split.The varlet at his plaint was grieu'd so sore, / That his deepe wounded hart in two did riue[…]. — 1590 •To use a technique of splitting or sawing wood radially from a log (e.g. clapboards). •(rare) To burst open; explode; discharge.Ten thousand French have ta'en the sacrament, To rive their dangerous artillery — 1821 •To land. •(no longer used) To pierce or cleave with a weapon. noun2 •A place torn; a rent; a rift. •A bank or shore. formsrave · rived · rove · riven · yrivd · riving · rives · riveth · rivest