eave

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   the lower edge of a roof that projects beyond the wall of a building

   A swallow had built its nest beneath the eave of the barn.

2. 2
   noun

   a projecting edge or border of a natural feature, such as a hill

   Snow lingered in the shadow of the mountain's rocky eave.

From Middle English eves, from Old English efes ("edge, border, overhanging part of a roof"). Middle English eves was singular, but its final -s was later interpreted as a plural ending; modern eave consequently arose as a back-formation. The older form survives chiefly in the usual plural eaves.

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