stave in

verb

staved in; staving in; staves in
: to be broken or crushed inward or to break or crush (something) inward
The hull of the boat stove in when it hit the rocks.
The rocks stove in the hull of the boat.

Examples of stave in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Take a rock, grit his teeth, and stave in that beautiful, trusting face? — Téa Obreht, New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2026

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“Stave in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stave%20in. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

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