1
: an act or instance of stealing : theft
also
: a financial exploitation
2
: a usually cheap exploitive imitation
ripped off; ripping off; rips off
2
: to copy or imitate blatantly or unscrupulously
3
: to perform, achieve, or score quickly or easily
ripped off 10 straight points
Synonyms
Examples of rip-off in a Sentence
Noun
a daring burglary of the art museum that resulted in one of the greatest rip-offs in history
Verb
the teens ripped off the store where they had been working for the summer
the thief ripped off some jewelry as soon as no one was looking
Recent Examples on the Web
Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 15 Aug. 2024
Latest from Michael Hiltzik Column: Federal regulators step up their campaign against predatory payday lenders and their rip-offs
Column: The CrowdStrike meltdown reminds us that the hacking problem doesn’t come only from outside
Column: Who elected Elon Musk our arbiter of social norms?
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2024
Emanuel Wilson ripped off a 14-yard run and was tripped up by the turf monster.
—Rob Reischel, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rip-off 
Noun
Fede Álvarez understands that there’s a thin line between an homage, a follow-up and a rip-off.
—Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 15 Aug. 2024
Latest from Michael Hiltzik Column: Federal regulators step up their campaign against predatory payday lenders and their rip-offs
Column: The CrowdStrike meltdown reminds us that the hacking problem doesn’t come only from outside
Column: Who elected Elon Musk our arbiter of social norms?
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Verb
Each ripped off a run of 30-plus yards before USC finished its second drive.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2024
Emanuel Wilson ripped off a 14-yard run and was tripped up by the turf monster.
—Rob Reischel, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rip-off
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rip-off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near rip-off
Cite this Entry
“Rip-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rip-off. Accessed 20 Sep. 2024.
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