ripe

[ rahyp ]
See synonyms for ripe on Thesaurus.com
adjective,rip·er, rip·est.
  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.

  1. advanced to the point of being in the best condition for use, as cheese or beer.

  2. fully grown or developed, as animals when ready to be killed and used for food.

  3. arrived at the highest or a high point of development or excellence; mature.

  4. of mature judgment or knowledge: ripe scholars; a ripe mind.

  5. characterized by full development of body or mind: of ripe years.

  6. (of time) advanced: a ripe old age.

  7. (of ideas, plans, etc.) ready for action, execution, etc.

  8. (of people) fully prepared or ready to do or undergo something: He was ripe for a change in jobs.

  9. fully or sufficiently advanced; ready enough; auspicious: The time is ripe for a new foreign policy.

  10. ready for some operation or process: a ripe abscess.

  11. Archaic. drunk: reeling ripe.

Origin of ripe

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English rīpe; cognate with Dutch rijp,German reif; akin to Old English ripan “to harvest, reap”; see reap

synonym study For ripe

1. 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.

Other words for ripe

Other words from ripe

  • ripely, adverb
  • ripeness, noun
  • half-ripe, adjective

Words that may be confused with ripe

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use ripe in a sentence

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

  1. fully developed in mind or body

  2. resembling ripe fruit, esp in redness or fullness: a ripe complexion

  3. (postpositive foll by for) ready or eager (to undertake or undergo an action)

  4. (postpositive foll by for) suitable; right or opportune: the time is not yet ripe

  5. mature in judgment or knowledge

  6. advanced but healthy (esp in the phrase a ripe old age)

  7. slang

    • complete; thorough

    • excessive; exorbitant

  8. slang slightly indecent; risqué

Origin of ripe

1
Old English rīpe; related to Old Saxon rīpi, Old High German rīfi, German reif

Derived forms of ripe

  • ripely, adverb
  • ripeness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with ripe

ripe

In addition to the idiom beginning with ripe

  • ripe old age

also see:

  • time is ripe

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.