an act or instance of ripping off another or others; a theft, cheat, or swindle.
exploitation, especially of those who cannot prevent or counter it.
a copy or imitation.
a person who rips off another or others; thief or swindler.
Origin of ripoff
First recorded in 1965–70; noun use of verb phrase rip off
rip
1
[rip]
verb (used with object),ripped,rip·ping.
to cut or tear apart in a rough or vigorous manner: to rip open a seam; to rip up a sheet.
to cut or tear away in a rough or vigorous manner: to rip bark from a tree.
to saw (wood) in the direction of the grain.
Digital Technology. to copy (audio or video files from a CD, DVD, or website) to a hard drive or mobile device, typically by extracting the raw data and changing the file format in the process: Can you rip this CD for me?Compare burn1(def 29).See also DAE
verb (used without object),ripped,rip·ping.
to become torn apart or split open: Cheap cloth rips easily.
Informal. to move with violence or great speed: The sports car ripped along in a cloud of dust and exhaust fumes.
noun
a rent made by ripping; tear.
Slang. a cheat, swindle, or theft; ripoff: The average consumer doesn't realize that the new tax is a rip.
Verb Phrases
rip into, Informal. to attack physically or verbally; assail.
rip off, Slang.
to steal or pilfer.
to rob or steal from.
to swindle, cheat, or exploit; take advantage of: phony charity appeals that rip off a gullible public.
rip out, Informal. to utter angrily, as with an oath or exclamation.
Idioms
let rip, Slang.
to utter a series of oaths; swear.
to speak or write violently, rapidly, or at great length.
to allow to proceed at full speed or without restraint.
Origin of rip
1
1470–80;1960–65for def 10; obscurely akin to Frisianrippe,dialectal Dutchrippen; compare dialectal Englishripple to scratch
Related formsrip·pa·ble, adjectiveun·rip·pa·ble, adjectiveCan be confusedburglarizemugrip offrobsteal (see synonym study at rob)
"an act of fraud, a swindle," 1969, from verbal phrase rip off "to steal or rob" (c.1967) in U.S. black slang, from rip (v.) + off (adv.). Rip was prison slang for "to steal" since 1904, and was also used in this sense in 12c. Meaning "an exploitative imitation, a plagiarism" is from 1971. Related: Ripped-off.
rip
v.
"tear apart," c.1400, probably of North Sea Germanic origin (cf. Flemish rippen "strip off roughly," Frisian rippe "to tear, rip") or else from a Scandinavian source (cf. Swedish reppa, Danish rippe "to tear, rip"). In either case, from Proto-Germanic *rupjan-, from PIE root *reup-, *reub- "to snatch." Meaning "to slash open" is from 1570s. Related: Ripped; ripping.
In garments we rip along the line at which they were sewed; we tear the texture of the cloth. ... Rend implies great force or violence. [Century Dictionary]
Meaning "to move with slashing force" (1798) is the sense in let her rip, American English colloquial phrase attested from 1853. The noun is attested from 1711. The parachutist's rip cord (1911) originally was a device in ballooning to open a panel and release air.
rip
n.1
"rough water," 1775, perhaps a special use of rip (v.). Originally of seas; application to rivers is from 1828.
rip
n.2
"thing of little value," 1815, earlier "inferior or worn-out horse" (1778), perhaps altered from slang rep (1747) "man of loose character; vicious, reckless and worthless person," which itself is perhaps short for reprobate (n.).
