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?
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.
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.
rip out to utter angrily, as with an oath or exclamation.
rip off
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 into to attack physically or verbally; assail.
a dissolute or worthless person.
a worthless or worn-out horse.
something of little or no value.
something or someone of little or no value
an old worn-out horse
a dissolute character; reprobate
to tear or be torn violently or roughly; split or be rent
(tr; foll by off or out) to remove hastily, carelessly, or roughly
they ripped out all the old kitchen units
informal (intr) to move violently or precipitously; rush headlong
informal to pour violent abuse (on); make a verbal attack (on)
(tr) to saw or split (wood) in the direction of the grain
informal (tr) computing to copy (music or software) without permission or making any payment
to act or speak without restraint
the place where something is torn; a tear or split
short for ripsaw
A stretch of water in a river, estuary, or tidal channel made rough by waves meeting an opposing current.
A rip current.
See tear 2.
First recorded in 1400–50; 1960–65 rip 1 for def. 10; Middle English rippen “to tear out (seams, sutures), rip, rip off”; further origin uncertain; obscurely akin to Frisian rippe, Middle Dutch rippen, reppen; compare dialectal English ripple “to scratch”
First recorded in 1765–75; see origin at rip 1, ripple 1
First recorded in 1770–80; of uncertain origin; possibly alteration of rep, shortened form of reprobate
From Latin requiēscat (or requiēscant ) in pāce
When you rip something, you tear it quickly or forcefully. It's almost always better to rip off a Band-Aid than to peel it off slowly. You can rip a piece of paper in half, or rip a hole in the roof of your tent. When you tear, split, or pull something apart, you rip it. You can also rip figuratively — like when your move to a new city rips you apart from your best friend. A rip off is a bad deal or a swindle, a phrase that's been popular since about 1970, although rip meaning "steal" was used as prison slang much earlier.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Let Hollywood creatives get back to trying to rip each other’s heads off at the box office, in streaming, online and everywhere else we compete.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Officials warned of hazardous conditions — such as high surf and strong rip currents — across much of the Southern California coastline.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
She said: "I would wake up in the night trying to rip it off my face. I felt suffocated. I've tried every single mask going, but no, it's awful."
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
As the night wore on and the energy in the stands flatlined, they piled into an empty section in the upper reaches of the right field seats with plans to rip off their shirts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
When he tucked it in I saw the same little V-shaped rip at the top of the rear seam of his waist that had seen for the last couple of weeks.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
PopUp’s trademarked motto is “Grip, Rip, and Dip.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026
Later this year, Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser will star in “Dutton Ranch,” reprising their respective “Yellowstone” roles as John Dutton’s volcanic daughter Beth Dutton and her husband, boss ranch hand Rip Wheeler.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 1, 2026
"Michael Keaton was there, Brian Cox and a very young Cole Hauser who actually at the moment is a huge star who plays Rip in Yellowstone," he said.
From BBC ● Feb. 17, 2026
A Rip Van Winkle who slept through the last half-century and awoke on Monday, Oct.
From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2025
I’m like that old man with the beard, Rip Van Winkle.
From "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven
RIP, Sam Neill: The New Zealand actor died unexpectedly today at 78.
From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026
A comment from Yeovilton Military Wives Choir said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends and colleagues of those who sadly lost their lives. May they RIP."
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
"I counted him as a friend and a decent, principled and kind man. My brutha you will be sorely missed. RIP"
From BBC ● Mar. 1, 2026
“I’m all the way in Florida and have never been anywhere near SoCal and even I know how legendary that venue is. RIP to a real one,” lamented another.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2025
Downtown Clover started at a boarded-up gas station with RIP spray-painted across its front, and ended at an empty lot that once held the depot where Henrietta caught her train to Baltimore.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
“All those R.I.P. emails or tweets and Instagram posts and TikToks, all of the things we see after somebody passes are so sweet,” he added.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026
Only Fools And Horses co-star Sue Holderness, who played Marlene in the sitcom, paid tribute to Murray on X, saying: "R.I.P. darling Patrick. Much love. You will be greatly missed."
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2025
If so, there could be no one around to put an R.I.P. on humanity’s gravestone.
From Salon ● Feb. 24, 2024
Most end with loved ones sharing R.I.P. posts.
From New York Times ● Nov. 27, 2021
You’d nod and then ask the person on what wall she wanted the R.I.P. and what to paint on it.
From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez
“It rips out Prop. 103’s good‑driver protections and replaces your actual driving record with a black‑box score built on sweeping data collection,’’ Balber said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
The episode’s signature moment comes in a soliloquy from Gen Z hero Ava Daniels, in which she rips into the idea that A.I. is inevitable and talks about how we can and should fight it.
From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026
“It’s like realizing you don’t have the title to your home as the market rips higher, that your purchase was null and void.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
"There can be rips or currents, but most of the time this particular bit of the beach is quite safe."
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
Bunny’s tweed jacket was slung across the back of his chair, exposing several large rips and stains in the lining.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
It exploded in recent days as devastating wildfires ripped through regions of France and Spain, forcing more than 300,000 people to evacuate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The discovery began with an exceptionally bright flare produced when a star wandered too close to a massive black hole and was ripped apart by its intense gravity.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
Twenty firefighters were taken to hospital after a blaze ripped through an industrial unit and spread to a fertiliser store, triggering a major explosion.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
Now he says the firm ruthlessly ripped him off.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
It only winced, and fending off the spear with one claw, it ripped off Abel’s cape with the other.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
The fires in Spain that have been raging for days in and around the Madrid region are the biggest in the area’s history, ripping through dry vegetation, homes and campsites.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Moments later, however, he promised the audience “we’ll do a little ripping if you don’t mind,” signaling a shift away from the night’s opening message of resilience.
From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026
Now he anticipates removing drywall and ripping out the floors entirely.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
The company is just one example of the many housing stocks that have been ripping higher over the past month.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
He’s ripping off masking tape with his teeth.
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
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.
