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stave sth in

mainly UK phrasal verb with stave
 
/steɪv/
 
verb (staved or stove)

Definition

to push or hit something such as a door or other surface so that it breaks and falls towards the inside: A couple of teenagers were trying to stave in our shed door. The front of the ship was stove in where it had hit the rock.Destroying and demolishingDamaging and spoiling
(Definition of stave sth in from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

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