ripen
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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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
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.
Though they have found shrubs, only some are seed-producing females and these take three years to ripen.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
And like every such show, it can be expected to ripen with age, if age comes.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 13, 2025
Because Philip issued the ordinance at the end of July, vignerons would have to cut down their own harvest just as the grapes were beginning to ripen.
From Salon • Aug. 26, 2024
The durians are also less likely to ripen too quickly — and emit more odor — in the cooler night temperatures.
From New York Times • Jun. 16, 2024
The important thing was to get the corn planted; it, at least, would do all right, though it would not ripen until late September or October.
From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien
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.
