ripping

[ rip-ing ]

/ ˈrɪp ɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ripping ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

Chiefly British Informal. excellent; splendid; fine.

Nearby words

ripoff, ripon, riposte, ripped, ripper, ripping, ripple, ripple control, ripple effect, ripple mark, ripplegrass

Origin of ripping

First recorded in 1705–15; rip¹ + -ing²

Related forms

rip·ping·ly, adverb

Definition for ripping (2 of 2)

rip

[ rip ]

/ rɪp /

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.

Origin of rip

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

SYNONYMS FOR rip

1 See tear².

7 laceration, cut.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR rip ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

rip·pa·ble, adjectiveun·rip·pa·ble, adjective

Can be confused

burglarize mug rip off rob steal (see synonym study at rob)

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

Examples from the Web for 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|DAILY BEAST
Why is riffing on—and ripping off—Shakespeare so incredibly enticing?
Book Bag: 5 Novels Shakespeare Sort of Wrote|Lois Leveen|October 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“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|DAILY BEAST
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|DAILY BEAST

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|DAILY BEAST
Old Joe lost no time in ripping open the deerskin fastenings of the bag and dragging out its contents.
The Bungalow Boys North of Fifty-Three|Dexter J. Forrester
It's such a terrible waste of time, and I know Oxford's ripping.
Sinister Street, vol. 1|Compton Mackenzie
Ripping it open with his pen-knife, he found enclosed the identical scrawl inserted by himself many years before.
Mind and Body|William Walker Atkinson
The bullets were ripping against our sides and the boat was filling with water.
Australia in Arms|Phillip F.E. Schuler
She was very ill, and even in her delirium showed the bent of her mind by ripping her sheets into strips to serve as bandages.
Heroines That Every Child Should Know|Various

British Dictionary definitions for ripping (1 of 5)

ripping

/ (ˈrɪpɪŋ) /

adjective

archaic, British slang excellent; splendid

Derived Forms

rippingly, adverb

British Dictionary definitions for ripping (2 of 5)

RIP

abbreviation for

requiescat or requiescant in pace

Word Origin for RIP

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

British Dictionary definitions for ripping (3 of 5)

rip

/ (rɪp) /

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

Derived Forms

rippable, adjective

Word Origin for rip

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

British Dictionary definitions for ripping (4 of 5)

rip

/ (rɪp) /

noun

short for riptide (def. 1)

Word Origin for rip

C18: perhaps from rip 1

British Dictionary definitions for ripping (5 of 5)

rip

/ (rɪp) /

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

Science definitions for ripping

rip

[ rĭp ]

A stretch of water in a river, estuary, or tidal channel made rough by waves meeting an opposing current.

A rip current.

Idioms and Phrases with ripping

rip

In addition to the idioms beginning with rip

ripe old age
rip into
rip off

also see:

let it rip