rip
verb · noun
Simple meaning
Tear or be torn violently.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ripIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈɹɪp
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
Tear or be torn violently
“The curtain ripped from top to bottom.”
transitive
To divide or separate the parts of (especially something flimsy, such as paper or fabric), by cutting or tearing; to tear off or out by violence.
intransitive
To tear apart; to rapidly become two parts.
transitive
To get by, or as if by, cutting or tearing.
transitive
To remove violently or wrongly.
intransitivefigurative
To move quickly and destructively.
noun
A tear (in paper, etc.).
A type of strong, rough tide or current.
AustraliaNew Zealand
A stretch of turbulent water in a river or the sea caused by one current flowing into or across another current
AustraliaNew Zealand
A rip current: a strong outflow of surface water, away from the shore, that returns water from incoming waves.
chiefly in the plural
A tract of broken water (in a river or stream), particularly one which is not as rough as rapids.
A diminutive of the male given name Ripley.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Tear or be torn violently
Used this way, rip is a common word with a clearly unfavourable pull. It comes across as direct, sometimes bluntly so.
“The curtain ripped from top to bottom.”
- Emotional tone
- Negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Blunt and forceful
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use rip
- “He gave the envelope a vigorous rip.”noun
- “There was a rip in his pants.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: tear or be torn violently
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.