ready
Americanadjective
-
completely prepared or in fit condition for immediate action or use.
troops ready for battle;
Dinner is ready.
- Antonyms:
- unfit
-
duly equipped, completed, adjusted, or arranged, as for an occasion or purpose.
The mechanic called to say that the car is ready.
-
willing.
ready to forgive.
- Antonyms:
- unwilling
-
prompt or quick in perceiving, comprehending, speaking, writing, etc.
-
proceeding from or showing such quickness.
a ready reply.
-
prompt or quick in action, performance, manifestation, etc..
a keen mind and ready wit.
-
inclined; disposed; apt.
too ready to criticize others.
-
in such a condition as to be imminent; likely at any moment.
a tree ready to fall.
-
immediately available for use.
a ready source of cash.
-
pertaining to prompt payment.
-
present or convenient.
to lie ready to one's hand.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
the state or condition of being ready.
-
Informal. ready money; cash.
interjection
idioms
-
make ready,
-
to bring to a state of readiness or completion; prepare.
-
Printing. to ready a press for printing.
-
-
ready up, to swindle.
-
get ready! (in calling the start of a race) be prepared to start.
Get ready! Get set! Go!
-
at the ready, in a condition of readiness, available for immediate use.
shoppers with their umbrellas at the ready;
soldiers keeping their weapons at the ready.
adjective
-
in a state of completion or preparedness, as for use or action
-
willing or eager
ready helpers
-
prompt or rapid
a ready response
-
(prenominal) quick in perceiving; intelligent
a ready mind
-
on the point (of) or liable (to)
ready to collapse
-
(postpositive) conveniently near (esp in the phrase ready to hand )
-
to prepare oneself or something for use or action
noun
-
informal short for ready money
-
-
poised for use or action
with pen at the ready
-
(of a rifle) in the position normally adopted immediately prior to aiming and firing
-
verb
Commonly Confused
See already.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ready
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English redy, early Middle English rædig, equivalent to Old English rǣde “prompt” + -ig -y 1
Explanation
If you're ready for something, you're prepared — you're all set to do it. You're not truly ready for bed until you're wearing pajamas and have finished brushing your teeth. You can be physically ready, like when you grab a towel and sunblock to get ready for a day at the beach, or mentally ready, like when you're ready to rock your algebra test since you studied so much. Other things are ready when they're available, like dinner or a hotel room. If you ready something (or yourself), you prepare for some specific purpose. The Old English ræde meant "prepare a horse for riding," from a root meaning "ride."
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.
See Examples For:
Your phone tells you the table is ready.
From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026
“We’re watching the wind. I’m getting my cat carriers ready just in case,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026
It’s been another busy week of news, and I, for one, am ready to take a breather.
From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026
"I know him now and know what to expect. I'm ready to go and do my job," the Londoner said.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
The rattler’s head pulls back, ready to strike.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Depending on the expertise and equipment at a given location, however, many patients in Germany currently have readier access to CSF analysis than to amyloid PET.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 25, 2024
For instance, clinical malaria is known to exhaust T cells, he says, and vaccination, by preventing infection, might therefore leave T cells readier to combat other pathogens.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 23, 2023
I feel I’m much readier for it this time.
From New York Times ● Jan. 13, 2023
But Forsythe has given signs he may be readier to play than was commonly thought, performing admirably in pass-rush drills, in particular.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 12, 2021
But Joe was readier with his definition than I had expected, and completely stopped me by arguing circularly, and answering with a fixed look, “Her.”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Moore might not just be the best high school quarterback in the nation but also the readiest for the college game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 20, 2022
Reid has been with the Seahawks the longest, playing in the final preseason game, and Carroll said he is the readiest to contribute as a result.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 10, 2021
The readiest way to make sense of him—and to hold at arm's length the pathology that overshadowed and overpowered and informed his genius—is to approach him as some kind of martyr.
From Slate ● Nov. 6, 2013
Our dialects are often the weapon readiest to hand in that fight.
From Slate ● Aug. 22, 2012
His first proposition and request, that the dance begun at Mr. Cole’s should be finished there—that the same party should be collected, and the same musician engaged, met with the readiest acquiescence.
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
With that cleared up, Parton readied her rhinestone mic-drop: “I just know if I have to pee, I’m gon’ pee.
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2026
The horses will be taken in trailers to a corral in Modoc National Forest, where they’ll be readied for adoption.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
They also readied the committee for an economy that shifts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
On the beach in Gaza City, the trio laid out their boards on the sand while they warmed up their limbs and readied their gear.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
Meredith had steamed and readied clothes for me, my mom, and the girls.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
“That everlasting Origin,” Charles Darwin complained in 1868 as he was readying yet another version of “On the Origin of Species,” first published in 1859.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
She said the group is readying its strategy to get more funding for the program next year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
The company said Monday it is "readying the first airplanes" for delivery to launch customer Southwest Airlines.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
He also encouraged landowners and land managers to take precautionary measures including the readying of specialist fire equipment.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
I could tell he was readying himself to tell me something.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
