Cive
/saɪv/noun
An obsolete word for a chive or similar onion plant.
Did you know?Cive descends from the same Latin onion word that produced several European names for chives and related alliums, plants long valued in folk medicine and protective household lore.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
cepa
“Onion; the ancient root behind later names for chives and related plants.”
Late Latin
Latin
cēpa
“Onion or bulb, with regional forms developing in the Romance languages.”
Old French
Old French
cive
“Chive or onion-like herb.”
Middle English
English
cive
“A chive or small onion plant.”
15th–16th Century
English
cive
“An increasingly archaic culinary name for chives.”
Modern English
English
cive
“An obsolete or dialectal term for chive.”
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