W. E. B. Du Bois
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English is rife with words that have been handed down to us from Old English—among them, rife. It comes from the Old English adjective rȳfe and first appeared in written form in the 12th century. Its oldest meaning, still in use today, is synonymous with widespread and prevalent; it's more likely, however, than either of those to describe negative things, as in “corruption and greed were rife in City Hall.” Most often, rife is used alongside with to mean “abounding.” Although rife can be appropriately used for good or neutral things in this sense (and all senses), as in the first sentence of this paragraph, like its synonym and fellow Old English descendant lousy (from the Old English noun lūs, meaning “louse”), it tends to describe things one wishes weren’t in such copious supply.
Examples of rife in a Sentence
Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 9 May 2025
But having never won at Brighton in the top flight, fears of a costly result were rife, especially after losing 4-1 to another rival, Aston Villa, two weeks ago.
—Harry De Cosemo, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
Related article Anti-trans rhetoric is rife in the British media.
—Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 19 Apr. 2025
Multiple warnings last year highlighted just how rife such Play Store abuse remains.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes, 16 Mar. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Rife.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rife. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
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rife
adjective
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