ripe
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.
resembling such fruit, as in ruddiness and fullness: ripe, red lips.
advanced to the point of being in the best condition for use, as cheese or beer.
fully grown or developed, as animals when ready to be killed and used for food.
arrived at the highest or a high point of development or excellence; mature.
of mature judgment or knowledge: ripe scholars; a ripe mind.
characterized by full development of body or mind: of ripe years.
(of time) advanced: a ripe old age.
(of ideas, plans, etc.) ready for action, execution, etc.
(of people) fully prepared or ready to do or undergo something: He was ripe for a change in jobs.
fully or sufficiently advanced; ready enough; auspicious: The time is ripe for a new foreign policy.
ready for some operation or process: a ripe abscess.
Archaic. drunk: reeling ripe.
Origin of ripe
1synonym study For ripe
Other words for ripe
Other words from ripe
- ripely, adverb
- ripeness, noun
- half-ripe, adjective
Words that may be confused with ripe
- rife, ripe
Words Nearby ripe
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use ripe in a sentence
Caring for employees has never been harder, therefore, or more ripe for change.
5 of the best tips for navigating the pandemic at work from chief HR officers | Michal Lev-Ram, writer | August 31, 2020 | FortuneSilbert, however, believes the opportunity is ripe for North American crypto firms to reclaim a significant share of the world’s mining power.
For each region, the team determined whether conditions were ripe for a flare-inducing double-arc instability, and then aimed to predict the most powerful flares the sun produces, called X-class flares.
The physics of solar flares could help scientists predict imminent outbursts | Emily Conover | July 30, 2020 | Science NewsThe moment was ripe for a novel statewide organizing approach.
How Los Angeles and San Diego Unified Started Driving State Education Policy | Will Huntsberry | July 29, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoHe had the insight to tell when infrared technology, formerly the province of the experts, was ripe for routine use in a big project.
Astronomers unveil the most complete 3-D map of the local universe | John Barrat | May 25, 2011 | The Smithsonian Insider
The time is ripe—and right—for action to begin that would divest Russia of the World Cup and award it to another nation.
Police sources informed Reforma that both action are considered “high risk” and ripe for “anarchist infiltration.”
Mexican Protesters Look to Start a New Revolution | Jason McGahan | November 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn 1968, at the ripe age of 14, I was at the Miami convention carrying my Rockefeller sign on the convention floor.
But one issue, intriguingly, seems ripe for genuine bipartisan cooperation: criminal justice reform.
Why Isn’t Prison Justice on the Ballot This Tuesday? | Inimai Chettiar, Abigail Finkelman | November 1, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Judge is currently set for an October 10 release date, a ripe calendar spot for a potential Oscar run.
Robert Downey Jr. Just Made the Year’s Sappiest Flick | Alex Suskind | September 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTI prayed for her before the temple, and unto the very end I will seek after her, and she flourished as a grape soon ripe.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version | VariousPerhaps another reason may be named in the wood being so ripe and dry as to permit free vibration.
Violins and Violin Makers | Joseph PearceThey soon reached a small island where ripe fruits were abundant, and where they could provide fresh supplies for the ships.
Alila, Our Little Philippine Cousin | Mary Hazelton WadeChristianity spread rapidly because the Roman Empire was ripe for a new religion.
God and my Neighbour | Robert BlatchfordWhen the leaf is ripe, it gets yellow spots on it; and on bending the leaf it cracks.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.
British Dictionary definitions for ripe
/ (raɪp) /
(of fruit, grain, etc) mature and ready to be eaten or used; fully developed
mature enough to be eaten or used: ripe cheese
fully developed in mind or body
resembling ripe fruit, esp in redness or fullness: a ripe complexion
(postpositive foll by for) ready or eager (to undertake or undergo an action)
(postpositive foll by for) suitable; right or opportune: the time is not yet ripe
mature in judgment or knowledge
advanced but healthy (esp in the phrase a ripe old age)
slang
complete; thorough
excessive; exorbitant
slang slightly indecent; risqué
Origin of ripe
1Derived 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
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.
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