ridge

[ rij ]

/ rɪdʒ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ridge ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a long, narrow elevation of land; a chain of hills or mountains.

the long and narrow upper edge, angle, or crest of something, as a hill, wave, or vault.

the back of an animal.

any raised, narrow strip, as on cloth.

the horizontal line in which the tops of the rafters of a roof meet.

(on a weather chart) a narrow, elongated area of high pressure.

verb (used with object), ridged, ridg·ing.

to provide with or form into a ridge or ridges.

to mark with or as if with ridges.

verb (used without object), ridged, ridg·ing.

to form ridges.

Nearby words

Origin of ridge

before 900; Middle English rigge (noun), Old English hrycg spine, crest, ridge; cognate with Dutch rug, German Rücken, Old Norse hryggr

Related formsridge·like, adjectiveun·ridged, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ridge

High on the slopes of Everest, some 70 sherpas surged over a ridge to see the beating.
Breaking Mount Everest’s Glass Ceiling|Amanda Padoan, Peter Zuckerman|March 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He and his friend huffed the iron wheelbarrow up the ridge, lashed it onto the Jeep.
The Ballad of Johnny France|Richard Ben Cramer|January 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Johnny was gone, over the ridge, to Bozeman, for repairs on his snowmobile.
The Ballad of Johnny France|Richard Ben Cramer|January 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
November drew near, cold below zero—Be thirty below, up the ridge—and still Don and Dan stuck it out.
The Ballad of Johnny France|Richard Ben Cramer|January 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He drove the highway to see if tracks led up the ridge toward the smoke.
The Ballad of Johnny France|Richard Ben Cramer|January 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Across the entrance the floor sloped up to the rocky ridge, of which Mr. Rogers had spoken; and beyond the ridge lay the pool.
Major Vigoureux|A. T. Quiller-Couch
While this movement was being effected Humbert rode forward, and crossing the ridge, reconnoitred the enemy.
Maurice Tiernay Soldier of Fortune|Charles James Lever
Then as they heard nothing to rouse their fears, they moved cautiously up the side of the ridge.
The War Trail|Elmer Russell Gregor
I begged of the adjutant to let me go off along the ridge on my own to see if I could find any trace.
At Suvla Bay|John Hargrave
So narrow is the ridge that the double row of open sheds leaves barely room for pack mules to pass.
An Australian in China|George Ernest Morrison

British Dictionary definitions for ridge

ridge

/ (rɪdʒ) /

noun

a long narrow raised land formation with sloping sides esp one formed by the meeting of two faces of a mountain or of a mountain buttress or spur

any long narrow raised strip or elevation, as on a fabric or in ploughed land

anatomy any elongated raised margin or border on a bone, tooth, tissue membrane, etc

the top of a roof at the junction of two sloping sides
(as modifier)a ridge tile

the back or backbone of an animal, esp a whale

meteorol an elongated area of high pressure, esp an extension of an anticycloneCompare trough (def. 4)

verb

to form into a ridge or ridges

Derived Formsridgelike, adjectiveridgy, adjective

Word Origin for ridge

Old English hrycg; related to Old High German hrucki, Old Norse hryggr

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

Word Origin and History for ridge

ridge

Old English hrycg "back of a man or beast," probably reinforced by Old Norse hryggr "back, ridge," from Proto-Germanic *khrugjaz (cf. Old Frisian hregg, Old Saxon hruggi, Dutch rug, Old High German hrukki, German Rücken "the back"), of uncertain origin. Also in Old English, "the top or crest of anything," especially when long and narrow. The connecting notion is of the "ridge" of the backbone. Spelling with -dg- is from late 15c. Ridge-runner "Southern Appalachian person" first recorded 1917.