Understanding Wood Cleavability: Ease of Splitting

The question asks for the measure of how easily wood can be split.

• Cleavability directly refers to the tendency of a material, like wood, to split along its grain with relative ease. This is influenced by factors such as the wood's structure and the presence of defects like knots or checks.
• Shearing strength measures the wood's resistance to forces that cause one part to slide relative to another. It's not about splitting ease.
• Stiffness (or modulus of elasticity) measures the wood's resistance to bending or deformation under load.
• Toughness is the ability of wood to absorb energy and resist fracture under impact or shock.

Therefore, cleavability is the specific property that measures the ease with which wood may split.