1
as in to disrupt
to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly
road pavement that had been riven by the annual freeze-and-thaw cycle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to rip
to cause (something) to separate into jagged pieces by violently pulling at it
the bitter disappointment threatened to rive my heart in two
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of rive
Through intimate encounters and unfiltered conversations, White Man Walking captures a nation riven by fear, disinformation, and historical grievance, while also offering glimpses of empathy and human connection.
—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
8 Jan. 2026
Advertisement Venezuela is a country of 28 million people, riven by armed militias, criminal organizations, and Chavista loyalists who haven’t simply vanished because Maduro was helicoptered to New York.
—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
6 Jan. 2026
The Venezuelan opposition has always been riven with divisions.
—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
Trump ends the year weak and unpopular, his coalition dispirited and riven by infighting.
—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
30 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rive
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
8 Jan. 2026
Advertisement Venezuela is a country of 28 million people, riven by armed militias, criminal organizations, and Chavista loyalists who haven’t simply vanished because Maduro was helicoptered to New York.
—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
6 Jan. 2026
The Venezuelan opposition has always been riven with divisions.
—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
Trump ends the year weak and unpopular, his coalition dispirited and riven by infighting.
—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
30 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rive
Verb
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The fires also disrupted travel across parts of Miami-Dade County.
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Poor nutrition, lack of physical activity and health conditions like metabolic bone disease can disrupt bone remodeling, leading to weaker bones over time.
Verb
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Pride flags are once again blowing in the breeze on Kings Highway in Haddonfield, New Jersey, less than 48 hours after police say a man ripped most of them down in the middle of the borough's busy business district.
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Sequined trousers resembled jeans, while ripped denim was finished with fine silver chains.
Verb
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Puncture wounds are a classic example, but lacerations, fractures that break the skin, burns, crush injuries and even relatively minor cuts can also pose a risk if they are contaminated with dirt or debris.
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Verb
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As the aircraft approached Atlantic City, a portion of one of the main rotor blades separated, the NTSB report showed, tearing the transmission and rotor apart and sending the helicopter crashing onto the Garden State Parkway.
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Mara will have to avoid OKC’s first-round curse, as each of the Thunder’s last two lottery picks have torn an ACL before their rookie seasons.
Verb
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The latest bout of internal military struggle, which started in 2023, fracturing along every possible fault line—religious, ethnic, political, tribal, and international—has created what the United Nations is calling the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
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Their relationships with their bankers had been fractured as had their contracts with talent.
Verb
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The excellent Julian Quinones’ early goal settled any nerves and then came the emotive, heart-rending second from talisman Raul Jimenez in the second half.
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Our mopey heroine is Percy Fraser (Sadie Soverall), a 28-year-old obituary writer who grew up spending summers lakeside in a small Canadian town but hasn’t been back since her world-rending split with Sam Florek (Matt Cornett), the boy next door.
Verb
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Rather than allowing operators to build national scale—which might create cost advantages that stabilize competition—regulation fragments the market into local fiefdoms where economies of scale are extraordinarily difficult to capture.
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The British electorate has fragmented.
Cite this Entry
“Rive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rive. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
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