rive

verb

ˈrīv 

rived ˈrīvd  ; riven ˈri-vən  also rived; riving ˈrī-viŋ  ; rives

transitive verb

1

a

: to wrench open or tear apart or to pieces : rend

b

: to split with force or violence

2

a

: to divide into pieces or fractions

an organization being riven by controversy

b

: fracture

intransitive verb

: to become split : crack

Synonyms

• break
• break up
• bust
• disintegrate
• dismember
• disrupt
• fracture
• fragment

Choose the Right Synonym for rive

tear, rip, rend, split, cleave, rive mean to separate forcibly.

tear implies pulling apart by force and leaving jagged edges.

tear up the letter

rip implies a pulling apart in one rapid uninterrupted motion often along a line or joint.

ripped the shirt on a nail

rend implies very violent or ruthless severing or sundering.

an angry mob rent the prisoner's clothes

split implies a cutting or breaking apart in a continuous, straight, and usually lengthwise direction or in the direction of grain or layers.

split logs for firewood

cleave implies very forceful splitting or cutting with a blow.

a bolt of lightning cleaved the giant oak

rive occurs most often in figurative use.

a political party riven by conflict

Examples of rive in a Sentence

road pavement that had been riven by the annual freeze-and-thaw cycle

the bitter disappointment threatened to rive my heart in two

Recent Examples on the Web

The Trump administration is said to be riven by an internal debate over how the United States should approach the post-Assad regime in Syria. —Noah Rothman, National Review, 22 Apr. 2025

Those subsequent parts demonstrated her box-office appeal as well as her ability to grippingly portray characters riven by trauma. —Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2025

The film features terrific archival footage of Los Angeles in the 1970s, when ASCO started, through the ‘80s, a city riven by protest and violence and a feeling of, well, disgust about the political moment. —Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 15 Mar. 2025

All these trends are global, whereas the world’s political structure is still riven by nation-states. —Yair Lapid, Foreign Affairs, 15 Dec. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old Norse rīfa; akin to Greek ereipein to tear down

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Kids Definition

rive

verb

ˈrīv 

rived ˈrīvd  ; riven ˈriv-ən  also rived; riving ˈrī-viŋ 

1

: to tear apart

2

: to become split or cause to split