/ sliːv; NAmE / noun
1.
a part of a piece of clothing that covers all or part of your arm :
a dress with short / long sleeves
Dan rolled up his sleeves and washed his hands.
—picture at jacket
—see also shirtsleeve
2.
-sleeved (in adjectives) having sleeves of the type mentioned :
a short-sleeved shirt
—picture at blouse
3.
(also jacket especially in NAmE ) a stiff paper or cardboard envelope for a record :
a colourful sleeve design
4.
a tube that covers a part of a machine to protect it
► sleeve·less adjective :
a sleeveless dress
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IDIOMS
- have / keep sth up your sleeve
—more at ace noun , card noun , laugh verb , roll verb , trick noun , wear verb
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English slēfe , slīef(e) , slӯf ; related to Middle Dutch sloove covering.