ripe

adjective

\ ˈrīp

riper; ripest

Definition of ripe

1 : fully grown and developed : mature ripe fruit ripe wheat

2 : having mature knowledge, understanding, or judgment

3 : of advanced years : late a ripe old age

4a : suitable, appropriate the time was ripe for the attempt

b : fully prepared : ready the colonies were ripe for revolution

5a : brought by aging to full flavor or the best state : mellow ripe cheese

b : smelly, stinking

6 : ruddy, plump, or full like ripened fruit a ripe figure

7 : indecent ripe language

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Examples of ripe in a Sentence

The apples are nearly ripe. the clothes of the field hands were sweaty and ripe after a hard day's work

Recent Examples on the Web

The gray-green olive groves cover the hillside, and the Chicagoans climb into tree branches to harvest ripe fruit onto waiting tarps. — David Degner, Smithsonian, "Two Tour Guides—One Israeli, One Palestinian—Offer a New Way to See the Holy Land," 9 July 2019 In western Colorado, areas stretching from the Wyoming border to south of Grand Junction were under a red-flag warning, meaning hot, dry and windy weather could make conditions ripe for wildfires. — Judith Kohler, The Denver Post, "Hot weather to add sizzle to the Fourth of July in Denver area while eastern plains could see storms," 4 July 2019 None of these artists fit easily into ideological boxes, which makes them ripe targets for online mobs. — Shaan Amin, The New Republic, "Can the Left Win YouTube?," 2 July 2019 Sprawling mountains of ripe green and lush cliffsides stretch before us as the sea tugs our ship toward the docks of Arida, my home island. — David Canfield, EW.com, "First look: Next year's biggest YA fantasy could be All the Stars and Teeth," 2 July 2019 Pleasingly round, refreshingly crisp and extremely juicy when ripe, these pears often are used to add sweetness in a short rib marinade or to cut through the richness in a cold bowl of nengmyun. — Dami Lee, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Yakult, ramen or Asian pears: What does your H Mart purchase say about you?," 1 July 2019 Homestead makes a ripe target for those wanting to draw attention to the administration’s broader approach to criminal justice, an issue in which primary voters have high interest. — Melanie Mason, latimes.com, "A Florida detention center for migrant youths became an essential stop for Democratic candidates," 28 June 2019 That makes them ripe targets for multi-state companies loaded with hundreds of millions of dollars raised from investors in Canada, where marijuana is legal. — Sam Wood, https://www.inquirer.com, "Big marijuana firms are ‘rolling up’ local dispensaries and growers, skirting Pennsylvania’s laws," 4 June 2019 Security analysts say the industry is a ripe target for criminal actors because of the wealth of financial and other information flowing through payment and reservation systems. — Kimberly Chin, WSJ, "Marriott Says Starwood Data Breach Affects Up to 500 Million People," 30 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ripe.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

12 Jul 2019

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Time Traveler for ripe

The first known use of ripe was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for ripe

ripe

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of ripe

of fruits and vegetables : fully grown and developed and ready to be eaten

: ready or suitable for something

of food and especially cheese : brought to full flavor or the best state by being stored for a period of time

See the full definition for ripe in the English Language Learners Dictionary

ripe

adjective

\ ˈrīp

riper; ripest

Kids Definition of ripe

1 : fully grown and developed ripe fruit

2 : of advanced years a ripe old age

3 : ready entry 1 sense 1 They were ripe for action.

ripe

adjective

Legal Definition of ripe

1 : of, relating to, or being a claim for relief that is ready for judicial resolution because the injury is certain to occur and is not merely hypothetical or speculative — compare moot

2 : ready and appropriate for disclosure because reasonably determined to be valid and not required to be kept secret for business reasons —used of corporate information