ripping

[rip-ing]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ripping ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

Chiefly British Informal. excellent; splendid; fine.

Origin of ripping

First recorded in 1705–15; rip¹ + -ing²

Related formsrip·ping·ly, adverb

rip

[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

1470–80; 1960–65 for def 10; obscurely akin to Frisian rippe, dialectal Dutch rippen; compare dialectal English ripple to scratch

Related formsrip·pa·ble, adjectiveun·rip·pa·ble, adjective

Can be confusedburglarize mug rip off rob steal (see synonym study at rob)

Synonyms for rip

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR rip ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See tear². 7. laceration, cut.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for ripping

prime, satisfying, swell, boss, astonishing, keen, rewarding, divine, cool, smashing, agreeable, bad, colossal, dreamy, enjoyable, excellent, fabulous, fantastic, fantastical, glorious

Examples from the Web for ripping

Contemporary Examples of ripping

And what could be a more appropriate tribute to a writer who was always riffing on and ripping off earlier sources himself?
Book Bag: 5 Novels Shakespeare Sort of Wrote
Lois Leveen
October 10, 2014
Why is riffing on—and ripping off—Shakespeare so incredibly enticing?
Book Bag: 5 Novels Shakespeare Sort of Wrote
Lois Leveen
October 10, 2014
“He was trying to talk, ripping his head and shoulders off the gurney,” Fretland said.
Lifting the Curtain on Oklahoma's Botched Lethal Injection
Caitlin Dickson
August 29, 2014
At what point was the Speaker planning on ripping the microphone out of the hands of these political wizards?
Former Lobbyist Jack Abramoff On Congressional Travel Disclosure
Jack Abramoff
July 4, 2014
They wanted to party hard and forget the escalating violence that had left hundreds dead and was ripping the country apart.
Al-Sisi’s Egypt Is Worse For Gays Than The Muslim Brotherhood
Bel Trew
June 28, 2014

Historical Examples of ripping

I say, Henry, there's a ripping sketch of a new kind of engine in this paper.
Changing Winds
St. John G. Ervine
A ripping crash like the crackle of lightning in the vaulted room!
Two Thousand Miles Below
Charles Willard Diffin
She did not heed his swift gesture in ripping back the buckskin vest.
Louisiana Lou
William West Winter
But I have hoped—I believe—She's such a ripping girl, you know.
Kent Knowles: Quahaug
Joseph C. Lincoln
Lancelot said to his porridge-bowl, over the spoon, "I think he's ripping."
Love and Lucy
Maurice Henry Hewlett

British Dictionary definitions for ripping

ripping

adjective

archaic, British slang excellent; splendid

Derived Formsrippingly, adverb

RIP

abbreviation for

requiescat or requiescant in pace

Word Origin for RIP

Latin: may he, she, or they rest in peace

rip

verb rips, ripping or ripped

to tear or be torn violently or roughly; split or be rent

(tr ; foll by off or out) to remove hastily, carelessly, or roughlythey ripped out all the old kitchen units

(intr) informal to move violently or precipitously; rush headlong

(intr foll by into) informal to pour violent abuse (on); make a verbal attack (on)

(tr) to saw or split (wood) in the direction of the grain

(tr) informal computing to copy (music or software) without permission or making any payment

let rip to act or speak without restraint

noun

the place where something is torn; a tear or split

short for ripsaw

Word Origin for rip

C15: perhaps from Flemish rippen; compare Middle Dutch rippen to pull

rip

noun

short for riptide (def. 1)

Word Origin for rip

C18: perhaps from rip 1

rip

noun informal, archaic

something or someone of little or no value

an old worn-out horse

a dissolute character; reprobate

Word Origin for rip

C18: perhaps altered from rep, shortened from reprobate

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

Word Origin and History for ripping

adj.

"cutting," 1714, present participle adjective from rip (v.). Slange meaning "Very fast, rapid" os from 1826, hence further slang development "excellent, splendid" (1846.). Related: Rippingly.

rip

"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.).

ripping in Science