ramp1

[ramp] /ræmp/
noun
1.
a sloping surface connecting two levels; incline.
2.
a short concave slope or bend, as one connecting the higher and lower parts of a staircase railing at a landing.
3.
any extensive sloping walk or passageway.
4.
the act of ramping.
5.
Also called boarding ramp. a movable staircase for entering or leaving a cabin door of an airplane.
6.
Also called parking ramp. apron (def 6).
verb (used without object)
7.
(of animals) to stand or move with the forelegs or arms raised, as in animosity or excitement.
8.
(of a lion or other large quadruped represented on a coat of arms) to rise or stand on the hind legs.
9.
to rear as if to spring.
10.
to leap or dash with fury (often followed by about).
11.
to act violently; rage; storm:
ramping and raging in a great fury.
verb (used with object)
12.
to provide with a ramp or ramps:
Entrances will be ramped to accommodate those in wheelchairs.
Verb phrases
13.
ramp along, Nautical. to sail on a tack with all sails filled.
Origin
1350-1400; (v.) Middle English rampen < Old French ramper to creep, crawl, climb; (noun) < French rampe, derivative of ramper
Related forms
rampingly, adverb
unramped, adjective

ramp2

[ramp] /ræmp/
noun, Usually, ramps
1.
a wild onion, Allium tricoccum, of the amaryllis family, of eastern North America, having flat leaves and rounded clusters of whitish flowers; eaten raw or used as a flavoring in cooked foods.
Also called wild leek.
Origin
1530-40; back formation from ramps ramson, variant (with intrusive p) of rams, earlier rammys, orig. the singular of ramson
Examples from the web for ramp
  • Belle is attempting to leap over a double-wide ramp that leads to an underground parking garage.
  • The ramp is enclosed by cinder-block walls, about three feet high.
  • The students filed onstage, and a gaggle of movers lugged the piano up a metal ramp.
  • But firms aren't going to ramp up their hiring if consumer demand doesn't rise.
  • He knows early-stage companies face hurdles and burn through cash before they ramp up.
  • They came from businesses that opened near a town's new train station or the new off-ramp.
  • Flapping while running up a ramp takes far less energy than flight at the same angle.
  • Rather, it occurred during the ramp-up from apogee to the perigee-full-moon.
  • In a lidar gun, electronics ramp up battery power to high voltage that drives a laser diode.
  • Photons simple ramp up faster and terminate much faster.
British Dictionary definitions for ramp

ramp

/ræmp/
noun
1.
a sloping floor, path, etc, that joins two surfaces at different levels
2.
a movable stairway by which passengers enter and leave an aircraft
3.
the act of ramping
4.
(Brit, slang) a swindle, esp one involving exorbitant prices
5.
another name for sleeping policeman
verb
6.
(intransitive; often foll by about or around) (esp of animals) to rush around in a wild excited manner
7.
to act in a violent or threatening manner, as when angry (esp in the phrase ramp and rage)
8.
(transitive) (finance) to buy (a security) in the market with the object of raising its price and enhancing the image of the company behind it for financial gain
See also ramp down, ramp up
Word Origin
C18 (n): from C13 rampe, from Old French ramper to crawl or rear, probably of Germanic origin; compare Middle Low German ramp cramp
Word Origin and History for ramp
n.

1778, "slope," from French rampe, back-formation from Old French verb ramper "to climb, scale, mount;" see ramp (v.). Meaning "road on or off a major highway" is from 1952, American English.

"rude, boisterous girl or woman," mid-15c., perhaps from ramp (v.). Cf. romp in Johnson's Dictionary (1755): "a rude, awkward, boisterous, untaught girl."

v.

c.1300, "to climb; to stand on the hind legs" (of animals), from Old French ramper "to climb, scale, mount" (12c., in Modern French "to creep, crawl"), perhaps from Frankish *rampon "to contract oneself" (cf. Old High German rimpfan "to wrinkle," Old English hrimpan "to fold, wrinkle"), via notion of the bodily contraction involved in climbing [Klein], from Proto-Germanic *hrimp- "to contract oneself." Related: Ramped; ramping.

Related Abbreviations for ramp

RAMP

Rural Abandoned Mine Program