ripen

[ rahy-puhn ]

/ ˈraɪ pən /

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See synonyms for: ripen / ripened / ripening on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with or without object)

to make or become ripe.

to bring or come to maturity, the proper condition, etc.; mature.

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Origin of ripen

First recorded in 1555–65; ripe + -en¹

OTHER WORDS FROM ripen

rip·en·er, nounhalf-ripened, adjectiveo·ver·rip·en, verbun·der·rip·ened, adjective

un·rip·ened, adjectiveun·rip·en·ing, adjectivewell-ripened, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use ripen in a sentence

The ideal tomme-ripening cave sat below the house that her family had just sold.
When specialty cheesemaking becomes a quarantine pastime|By Kat Craddock/Saveur|December 1, 2020|Popular-Science
The 2017 growing season was exceptional, being a warm year with a good amount of rainfall to fully ripen the fruit and maintain a nice acidity.
The best wines for Thanksgiving|Rachel King|November 21, 2020|Fortune
If you decide to include the pears to serve as a dessert later, look for ones that are just ripening — not hard and woody, not soft.
This cocktail can keep you warm around the fire pit — and you can make it there, too|M. Carrie Allan|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
This was the third hot, dry vintage in a row, explains Master of Wine Jasper Morris, author of Inside Burgundy, who describes a July with brutal heat waves that pushed ripening.
Wildfires, trade wars, COVID-19: The 2020 global wine harvest may go down as the most challenging yet|Bernhard Warner|September 20, 2020|Fortune

I remember ripening coffee beans hanging down the banks, and masses of wild orchids.
Two Chickens, an Old Guitar, and a Group of Strangers: A Life-Changing Feast in Brazil|Annabel Langbein|November 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The plant is strong and vigorous, ripening in a few weeks, and when properly cultivated (p. 385) attaining a very large size.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Even the first blossoms of your youth paid us all that could be expected from a ripening manhood.
The Works Of John Dryden, Volume 4 (of 18)|John Dryden
Trellises, burdened with ripening grapes, were the boundary line between the garden and the orchard.
Alone|Marion Harland
Under the corners of her eyes above the rounded cheeks a pink stain lay like the first ripening flush on a wild strawberry.
In Search of the Unknown|Robert W. Chambers
Nothing but brabblings, scufflings, objurgations; a great outbreak ripening itself.
History Of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Vol. III. (of XXI.)|Thomas Carlyle

British Dictionary definitions for ripen

ripen

/ (ˈraɪpən) /

verb

to make or become ripe

Derived forms of ripen

ripener, noun

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

ripen

Origin of ripen

OTHER WORDS FROM ripen

Words related to ripen

How to use ripen in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ripen

Derived forms of ripen