ravish
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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(often passive) to give great delight to; enrapture
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to rape
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archaic to carry off by force
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have ravishedperfect
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has ravishedperfect 3rd person singular
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am ravishingprogressive 1st person singular
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are ravishingprogressive
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is ravishingprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been ravishingperfect progressive
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ravishingparticiple
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has been ravishingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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ravishessingular 3rd person
Past
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had ravishedperfect
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had been ravishingperfect progressive
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ravishedsimple
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was ravishingprogressive singular
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were ravishingprogressive plural
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ravishedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of ravish
1250–1300; Middle English ravishen < Middle French raviss-, long stem of ravir to seize ≪ Latin rapere; see rape 1
Explanation
If you are ravished by a piece of music, you are overcome with intense feeling while listening to it. The older meaning of ravish is to overcome by physical assault (especially sexual assault) and is still sometimes used. Ravish is a verb of contrasts, having two meanings that, while both dealing with emotional issues, are polar opposites — the first being to fill with joy, the second being to assault and violate a woman against her will. The history of ravish began with the negative connotation — that of seizing by violence and carrying someone, usually a woman, away. It comes from the Latin rapere, although the meaning wasn't always sexual violation — the idea of rape didn't appear until the mid-15th century.
Vocabulary lists containing ravish
Much Ado About Nothing
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The Suffix -ish, Part 2
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Metamorphoses
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
What Ravish needed, at a competition in Arizona in 2019, was companionship.
From New York Times • Aug. 25, 2021
Her husband Ravish told the BBC's Orla Guerin that his wife's death should be a warning to the UK.
From BBC • May 20, 2021
“What form factor to use to solve a problem ultimately depends on the application,” says FRL Research audio lead Ravish Mehra.
From The Verge • Sep. 3, 2020
But Ravish Kumar, anchor of NDTV’s Prime Time show, is pioneering a new form of public journalism.
From The Guardian • May 29, 2018
Sound forth, cœlestiall organs, let heauen's quire Ravish the dancing orbes, make them mount higher With nimble capers, & force Atlas tread Vpon his tiptoes, e're his siluer head Shall kisse his golden curthen.
From The Complete Works of Richard Crashaw, Volume I (of 2) by Crashaw, Richard
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
