cavern

1 of 2

noun

cav·​ern ˈka-vərn 

 also  -vrən

: cave

especially : one of large or indefinite extent

cavern

2 of 2

verb

caverned; caverning; caverns

transitive verb

1

: to place in or as if in a cavern

2

: to form a cavern of : hollow

—used with out

Synonyms

Noun

• cave
• grotto

Examples of cavern in a Sentence

Noun

a cavern with beautiful stalactites

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Built initially by Napoleon, these caverns offer a rare glimpse into 19th-century hydraulic engineering. —Joseph V Micallef, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025

Tucked behind a small two-story log cabin, the entrance to The Gorge Underground is easy to overlook—until the unseasonably cool air that emanates from the cavern opening stops you in your tracks. —Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 4 July 2025

Verb

In the hunt, scientists have erected detectors in a South Dakota cavern a mile underground, at the bottom of Lake Baikal in Siberia, under a mountain in Japan, and on the floor of the Mediterranean Sea. —Robert Lee Hotz, WSJ, 12 July 2018

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English caverne, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin caverna "hollow space, crevice, tree hole, cave," from cavus "hollow, sunken" + -erna, noun-forming suffix of uncertain origin — more at hole entry 1

Verb

derivative of cavern entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1630, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for cavern

• tavern

Kids Definition

cavern

noun

cav·​ern

ˈkav-ərn

: a cave often of large or unknown size

Medical Definition

cavern

noun

cav·​ern ˈkav-ərn 

: a cavity (as in the lung) caused by disease