ripen
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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ripens,
present (3rd person singular)
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ripened,
past participle, past
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ripening
present participle
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to make or become ripe.
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to bring or come to maturity, the proper condition, etc.; mature.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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ripenernoun
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overripenverb
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half-ripenedadjective
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underripenedadjective
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unripenedadjective
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unripeningadjective
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well-ripenedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ripensimple
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ripenssimple
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have ripenedperfect
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has ripenedperfect
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am ripeningprogressive
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are ripeningprogressive
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is ripeningprogressive
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have been ripeningperfect progressive
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has been ripeningperfect progressive
Past
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ripenedsimple
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had ripenedperfect
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was ripeningprogressive
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were ripeningprogressive
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had been ripeningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ripen
Explanation
When fruit becomes ripe and ready to eat, it ripens. Tomatoes will ripen after you pick them, becoming darker red and more juicy. You can use ripen to talk about the maturing process of all fruits, and some vegetables — apples, peppers, and corn all need to ripen before they're at the perfect, delicious state for being eaten. Figuratively, you can also talk about people this way: "She is really starting to ripen as an actor!" Before ripen was coined around 1560, the verb was ripe, as in, "When the avocados ripe, I'll make guacamole."
Vocabulary lists containing ripen
Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 1
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"In Response to Executive Order 9066"
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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.
See Examples For:
New tools that count and analyse fruit on the tree or vine, and predict when crops will ripen, are emerging.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
Lamont’s recommendation therefore, is to exercise patience.”IPOs are like bananas: they need to ripen before they’re ready to eat.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
Under the law, claims can go to federal court if a government agency denies them or doesn’t make a decision within six months, meaning the ones McCloskey dropped off could soon ripen for litigation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
But once harvested, mangoes continue to ripen quickly, making them highly vulnerable to softening, moisture loss, and spoilage during storage and transport.
From Science Daily ● May 23, 2026
We haggled with a handcart vendor for two big bunches of bananas, one ready to eat, the other still green, so it would ripen in a day or two.
From "The Bridge Home" by Padma Venkatraman
It ripens into criminality with the “Moorish” mystifications of the ex-con Malachi Z. York.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
For most Scandinavian vineyards, solaris is the grape of choice - an aromatic, hybrid variety that's well-adapted to colder climes, ripens easily, and is more disease resistant, allowing vineyards to avoid spraying pesticides.
From BBC ● Dec. 15, 2024
There is a sense of stasis to the aptly named two-hander, which never ripens from a situation into a story.
From New York Times ● Apr. 20, 2024
As it ripens, its color goes to yellow, then orange and finally red.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 15, 2024
Love that sets forth the soul like springtime and ripens it like summer.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
The water saved the young vines, but the heat ripened the château’s grapes faster, forcing Perrin to start harvesting in early August, three weeks early.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Maintaining storage temperatures near 12°C may allow mangoes to be harvested earlier, transported over longer distances, and ripened closer to their final markets while minimizing spoilage and quality loss.
From Science Daily ● May 23, 2026
Once they have ripened adequately, you can store them in the refrigerator for another week, but always serve them at room temperature.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 4, 2024
"These events have ripened one of the most iconic and important companies in the UK for a takeover by foreign investors," he added.
From BBC ● May 28, 2024
The mulberries had ripened in the last week.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Sand storms blew in from the Gobi, disrupting the ripening process and spoiling harvests.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Their study, published in Tropical Plants, found that the cooler temperature slows ripening, preserves fruit structure, and activates the mango's natural antioxidant defenses.
From Science Daily ● May 23, 2026
She shows me ripening limes and lemons inside her allotment greenhouse.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2025
“The circumstances are ripening in a way they never have before.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2024
If you planted pumpkin seeds there, in a few months there would be large plants growing across the ground, and a few months after that, there would be great yellow pumpkins ripening in the sun.
From "The Girl Who Married a Lion: and Other Tales from Africa" by Alexander Mccall Smith
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