1. A secret or confidential meeting.
2. Roman Catholic Church.
   1. The private rooms in which the cardinals meet to elect a new pope.
   2. The meeting held to elect a new pope.
3. A meeting of family members or associates.

[Middle English, private chamber, conclave of cardinals, from Latin conclāve, lockable room : com-, com- + clāvis, key.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.