ripe

[rahyp] /raɪp/
adjective, riper, ripest.
1.
having arrived at such a stage of growth or development as to be ready for reaping, gathering, eating, or use, as grain or fruit; completely matured.
2.
resembling such fruit, as in ruddiness and fullness:
ripe, red lips.
3.
advanced to the point of being in the best condition for use, as cheese or beer.
4.
fully grown or developed, as animals when ready to be killed and used for food.
5.
arrived at the highest or a high point of development or excellence; mature.
6.
of mature judgment or knowledge:
ripe scholars; a ripe mind.
7.
characterized by full development of body or mind:
of ripe years.
8.
(of time) advanced:
a ripe old age.
9.
(of ideas, plans, etc.) ready for action, execution, etc.
10.
(of people) fully prepared or ready to do or undergo something:
He was ripe for a change in jobs.
11.
fully or sufficiently advanced; ready enough; auspicious:
The time is ripe for a new foreign policy.
12.
ready for some operation or process:
a ripe abscess.
13.
Archaic. drunk:
reeling ripe.
Origin
before 900; Middle English; Old English rīpe; cognate with Dutch rijp, German reif; akin to Old English ripan to reap
Related forms
ripely, adverb
ripeness, noun
half-ripe, adjective
Can be confused
rife, ripe (see synonym study at the current entry)
Synonyms
1. grown, aged. Ripe, mature, mellow refer to that which is no longer in an incomplete stage of development. Ripe implies completed growth beyond which the processes of decay begin: a ripe banana. Mature means fully grown and developed as used of living organisms: a mature animal; a mature tree. Mellow denotes complete absence of sharpness or asperity, with sweetness and richness such as characterize ripeness or age: mellow fruit; mellow flavor.
Examples from the web for ripe
  • It doesn't allow you to choose ripe, harvestable truffles, so you'll rake up immature and unripe ones.
  • Good for cooking until fully ripe, then good for fresh eating too.
  • Courts are only supposed to be adjudicating cases between litigants who have an actual, fully-ripe dispute between them.
  • Geoscientists have identified that section as ripe for a quake.
  • But such trends might reveal when a region or state is ripe for unrest.
  • Clearly dinosaurs were ripe for extinction, and had been for a long time.
  • The disposable-versus-rechargeable battery debate seems ripe for a contrarian conclusion.
  • Art, antique and collectible offerings are ripe for sales of fakes, for example.
  • They set off after dark to feast on the ripe fruit found in the forest.
  • Monkeys and birds are attracted to the colors of ripe fruits and berries.
British Dictionary definitions for ripe

ripe

/raɪp/
adjective
1.
(of fruit, grain, etc) mature and ready to be eaten or used; fully developed
2.
mature enough to be eaten or used: ripe cheese
3.
fully developed in mind or body
4.
resembling ripe fruit, esp in redness or fullness: a ripe complexion
5.
(postpositive) foll by for. ready or eager (to undertake or undergo an action)
6.
(postpositive) foll by for. suitable; right or opportune: the time is not yet ripe
7.
mature in judgment or knowledge
8.
advanced but healthy (esp in the phrase a ripe old age)
9.
(slang)
  1. complete; thorough
  2. excessive; exorbitant
10.
(slang) slightly indecent; risqué
Derived Forms
ripely, adverb
ripeness, noun
Word Origin
Old English rīpe; related to Old Saxon rīpi, Old High German rīfi, German reif
Word Origin and History for ripe
adj.

Old English ripe "ready for reaping, fit for eating, mature," from West Germanic *ripijaz (cf. Old Saxon ripi, Middle Dutch ripe, Dutch rijp, Old High German rifi, German reif); related to Old English repan "to reap" (see reap). Meaning "ready for some action or effect" is from 1590s. Related: Ripely; ripeness.

Slang definitions & phrases for ripe

ripe

adjective
  1. Smelly or foul: smelling a bit ripe
  2. Intoxicated by alcohol: bit ripe after three Heinekens

ripe in Technology


Réseaux IP Européens

Idioms and Phrases with ripe

ripe

In addition to the idiom beginning with ripe also see: time is ripe