Did you know?

Click any word in a definition or example to find the entry for that word

ruffle

 - definition
Close

What are red words?

90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing. These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are more frequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

Close

Thesaurus

The thesaurus of synonyms and related words is fully integrated into the dictionary entries. Click on the T button in an entry to review the synonyms and related words for that meaning.

more
verb [transitive] American English pronunciation: ruffle /ˈrʌf(ə)l/ 
Word Forms
Close
present tense
I/you/we/theyruffle
he/she/itruffles
present participleruffling
past tenseruffled
past participleruffled

Related dictionary definitions

  1. 1
    to move something so that it is no longer smooth or even

    Don’t ruffle the tablecloth – I just ironed it.

    1. a.
      to move someones hair in a friendly way

      She kissed him on the forehead and ruffled his hair.

    2. b.
      used about birds

      The caged bird ruffled its throat feathers and sang.

    3. c.
      used about the wind

      a breeze ruffling the calm surface of the hotel pool

phrase

vocal fry

a speech habit in which a speaker lowers their voice at the end of a sentence

BuzzWord Article

Word of the Day Word of the Day

zeugma

the use of a word twice in the same sentence but with different meanings. The sentence ‘She...

Open Dictionary

conflict mineral

a mineral which is mined in a place where there is armed conflict, and sold to help pay for weapons

add a word

Blog

A must for anyone with an interest in the changing face of language. The Macmillan Dictionary blog explores English as it is spoken around the world today.

global English and language change from our blog