glove

noun \ ˈgləv \

Definition of glove

1 a :a covering for the hand having separate sections for each of the fingers and the thumb and often extending part way up the arm

b :¹gauntlet 1

2 a (1) :a padded leather covering for the hand used in baseball to catch a thrown or batted ball; specifically :one having individual thumb and finger sections usually connected with a lacing or webbing — compare mitt

(2) :fielding ability

he's got a good glove at three positions and can pinch-hit
—Casey Stengel

b :boxing glove

3 a :¹gauntlet 3

b gloves plural :the restraints of civility

the gloves came off for the interview

See glove defined for English-language learners

See glove defined for kids

Recent Examples of glove from the Web

The suspect, described as a heavyset male wearing white pants, black gloves and a black mask, entered the restaurant around 3:40 a.m. through an unsecured rear door, police said.

— sandra gomez-aceves, courant.com, "Hartford Police Looking For Popeye's Burglary Suspect," 9 Aug. 2017
Due to this limited hand functioning, Garrett uses special gloves to grip free weights, medicine balls with straps, and wrist cuffs with hooks to hang onto cable machines.

— elizabeth narins, Cosmopolitan, "This Paralyzed Man Working Out With His Girlfriend Will Melt Your Heart," 1 Aug. 2017
The first is the hand-in-glove relationship between a putative news organization and elected officials.

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Donald Trump Has Finally Erased the Line Between Conservatism and Conspiracy Theories," 1 Aug. 2017
Nikki Ricciardella, Junior, Infielder, Burroughs Excellent with the glove, was also a big contributor as the second-team All-Pacific League pick hit .328 with 20 hits, 17 runs and eight RBI.

— staff reports, Glendale News-Press, "All-Area Softball Second Team," 30 July 2017
But evolutionary biologist Blair Hedges, wearing gray rubber gloves, approaches one book with a mini–cotton swab.

— ann gibbons, Science | AAAS, "Goats, bookworms, a monk’s kiss: Biologists reveal the hidden history of ancient gospels," 25 July 2017
The Sally Ride Science Junior Academy invited youth in grades six through 12 to don goggles and gloves and learn practical applications of science from researchers and experts.

— mia rollins, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Sally Ride Junior Academy makes science accessible," 19 July 2017
Jeff Wilson jwilson@star-telegram.com Davis was next, and his towering drive to center field landed in the Orioles’ bullpen but only after a leaping Gomez saw it bounce out of his glove.

— jeff wilson, star-telegram, "Rangers’ offense confident, but struggles again in 12-1 loss to Orioles," 18 July 2017
This medical information is kept in the glove compartment and a Yellow Dot decal is affixed to the outside of the vehicle.

— atlanta life, ajc, "Georgia programs help senior drivers stay safe on the road," 14 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'glove.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of glove

Middle English, from Old English glōf; akin to Old Norse glōfi glove

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

glove

verb

Definition of glove

gloved; gloving

transitive verb

1 a :to cover with or as if with a glove

b :to furnish with gloves

2 :to catch (something, such as a baseball) in one's gloved hand

Recent Examples of glove from the Web

Kennedy exited after four-plus innings and 94 pitches, when Lorenzo Cain failed to glove a routine fly ball to center and Yolmer Sanchez reached third on the relay.

— maria torres, kansascity, "Royals get walk-off win in 10 innings against White Sox," 21 July 2017
Eddie Rosario, who shifted from left to center after Byron Buxton suffered a lacerated finger in the sixth, later failed to glove Josh Reddick’s soft liner for a two-run, go-ahead double.

— mike berardino, Twin Cities, "Twins’ Ervin Santana does what he can, but bullpen melts down against Houston," 29 May 2017
Then after two straight Kentucky singles, Watson shifted into high gear to glove a diving liner from UK's Evan White for the second out.

— ron higgins, NOLA.com, "Tigers batter Kentucky ace into submission in a 10-run rule SEC tourney win," 26 May 2017
And USD center fielder Colton Waltner made the play of the season in the eighth inning with a leaping catch while crashing into the outfield wall to glove a would-be home run by Pepperdine’s Ben Rodriguez.

— kirk kenney, sandiegouniontribune.com, "USD sweeps Pepperdine, but Toreros edged out for WCC Tournament berth," 21 May 2017
Jake McCabe let loose a shot from inside the blue line that Bernier appeared to easily track but failed on his attempt to glove it.

— eric stephens, Orange County Register, "Ducks salvage a point as they fall to Sabres in a shootout," 17 Mar. 2017

First Known Use of glove

15th century

GLOVE Defined for English Language Learners

glove

noun

Definition of glove for English Language Learners

: a covering for the hand that has separate parts for each finger
baseball : a padded leather covering for the hand that is used to catch the ball and that has individual thumb and finger sections
: a very thick, padded covering for the hand that is worn in the sport of boxing