Meaning

noun aromatic flower bud of a clove tree; yields a spice

noun moderate sized very symmetrical red-flowered evergreen widely cultivated in the tropics for its flower buds which are source of cloves

noun one of the small bulblets that can be split off of the axis of a larger garlic bulb

originFrom Middle English clove, an alteration of earlier clowe, borrowed from the first component of Old French clou (de girofle) (modern French clou de girofle), from Latin clāvus (“nail”) for its shape. Also see clāva (“knotty branch, club”). Doublet of clou and clavus.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0