"piece of a barrel," 1750, back-formation from staves (late 14c.), plural of staff, with the usual change of medial -f- to -v- (compare leaves/leaf). The plural form possibly was in Old English but not recorded there.
stave (v.)
1540s, "to fit with staves," from stave (n.). The meaning "break into staves" is from 1590s (with in from 1748, chiefly nautical, on notion of bashing in the staves of a cask). Past tense stove. Stave off (1620s), however, is literally "keep off with a staff," as of one beset by wolves or dogs. Related: Staved; staving.
实用例句
1. He is utterly ignorant of staff [ stave ] .
他对 五线谱 一窍不通.
来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
2. Many people switch on the television simply to stave off boredom over the Christmas break.
很多人打开电视仅仅是为了打发圣诞节休息期间的无聊时光而已。
来自柯林斯例句
3. In a desperate attempt to stave off defeat, he reluctantly promised wholesale reform of the constitution.
为了竭力避免败局，他勉强答应要对宪法进行大规模修改。
来自柯林斯例句
4. But the reality of discovery was a different matter, and he did all he could to stave it off.
但所发现的实际情况完全是另一回事，所以他只好尽自己所能暂缓其发生。
来自柯林斯例句
5. To stave off disaster we could look only to them.