Rip Van Winkle

[rip van wing-kuhl]

Origin

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noun

(in a story by Washington Irving) a ne'er-do-well who sleeps 20 years and upon waking is startled to find how much the world has changed.

(italics) the story itself, published in The Sketch Book (1819).

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Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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World English Dictionary

Rip Van Winkle (ˈrɪp væn ˈwɪŋk^əl)

—n
1.	a person who is oblivious to changes, esp in social attitudes or thought
2.	a person who sleeps a lot

[C19: from a character who slept for 20 years, in a story (1819) by Washington Irving (1783--1859), US writer]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

Rip Van Winkle

"person out of touch with current conditions," 1829, from name of character in Washington Irving's "Sketch Book" (1819-20).

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Matching Quote

"Those men are most apt to be obsequious and conciliating abroad, who are under the discipline of shrews at home."

-Washington Irving

Rip Van Winkle

Rip Van Win·kle