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
Annie Hylton, New Yorker, 14 May 2026
Like so many historical myths, this swashbuckling tale of pirates, court accusations, and gossip, which frames the rags-to-riches emergence of this American family, is rife with historical fiction.
—Literary Hub, 14 May 2026
His visit threatened to inflame tensions that are rife in the city after 2½ years of near-constant war and fragile ceasefires.
—Julia Frankel, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2026
Consolidation in the healthcare industry is rife.
—Rob Davis, ProPublica, 14 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Rife.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rife. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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rife
adjective
