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ripe

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ripe

  [rahyp]
Use ripe in a Sentence
–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.
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:
bef. 900; ME; OE rīpe; c. D rijp, G reif; akin to OE ripan to reap

Related forms:
ripely, adverb
ripeness, noun

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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ripe   (rīp)   
adj.   rip·er, rip·est

  1. Fully developed; mature: ripe peaches.

  2. Resembling matured fruit, as in fullness.

  3. Sufficiently advanced in preparation or aging to be used or eaten: ripe cheese.

  4. Thoroughly matured, as by study or experience; seasoned: ripe judgment.

  5. Advanced in years: the ripe age of 90.

  6. Fully prepared to do or undergo something; ready: "By 1965 the republic was ripe for a coup" (Alex Shoumatoff).

  7. Sufficiently advanced; opportune: The time is ripe for great societal changes.

  8. Exhibiting overtones of or references to sex; scatological: "The language on the stage was riper than anything I have heard in a lifetime of newspaper work" (John Hughes).

  9. Emitting a foul odor, especially body odor.


[Middle English, from Old English rīpe.]
ripe'ly adv., ripe'ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
ripe

  1. mod.
    alcohol intoxicated. : Yes, they were ripe all right. Stinking drunk.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

ripe 
O.E. ripe "ready for reaping, fit for eating," from W.Gmc. *ripijaz (cf. M.Du. ripe, Du. rijp, O.H.G. rifi, Ger. reif); related to O.E. repan "to reap" (see reap). The verb ripen "to grow ripe" is from 1561, replacing earlier verb ripe, from late O.E. ripian, from the adj.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: ripe
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or being a claim for relief that is ready for judicial resolution because the injury is certain to occur and is not merely hypothetical or speculative —compare MOOT
2 : ready and appropriate for disclosure because reasonably determined to be valid and not required to be kept secret for business reasons —used of corporate information —ripe·ness noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Computing Dictionary

RIPE
Réseaux IP Européens

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Idioms & Phrases

ripe

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

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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