a hollow in the earth, esp. one opening more or less horizontally into a hill, mountain, etc.

a storage cellar, esp. for wine.

English History . a secession, or a group of seceders, from a political party on some special question.

to hollow out.

Mining .

to cause (overlying material) to fall into a stope, sublevel, or the like.

to cause (supports, as stulls or sets) to collapse beneath overlying material.

to fill (a stope or the like) with caved-in material

sub-level caving.

to cave in. ?

cave in,

to fall in; collapse.

to cause to fall in or collapse.

Informal . to yield; submit; surrender

The opposition caved in before our superior arguments.

noun

cavern , cavity , den , grotto , hollow , pothole , rock shelter , subterrane , subterranean areanotes:cavern is more vague and rhetorical than cave ; a cavern is a large cave , antre , antrum , catacomb , caveman , caverned , cavernicolous , cavernous , cellar , collapse , cove , crumple , crypt , crypt. associatedwords: speleology , give , grot , hole , lair , luster , opening , overturn , plunge , rear , sinus , spelean , speleologist , speleology , spelunker , stalactite , stalagmite , toss , troglodyte , troglodytic , tunnel , upset

phrasal verb

buckle , collapse , crumple , give , go , break , crack , drop , give out , succumb