rip

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verb

/rɪp/

present tense
I/you/we/they	rip
he/she/it	rips
present participle	ripping
past tense	ripped
past participle	ripped

Related dictionary definitions

1
[intransitive/transitive] to tear something quickly and with a lot of force
Jodie ripped the letter open.
Stop pulling my shirt – you’ll rip it.
rip something to shreds (=destroy something completely by tearing it):
Her skirt was ripped to shreds.
rip something on something:
I ripped my jeans on a sharp nail.
rip at:
The dog went wild, ripping at the tablecloth.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
1. a.
  [intransitive] to be torn
  It’ll rip if you keep pulling it.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
2. b.
  [transitive] to make a hole in something using force
  A bolt of lightning had ripped a hole in the door.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
2
[transitive] to remove something quickly by pulling hard
rip something out/from/off/away/down etc:
We’ve ripped out the old fireplace and put in a new one.
He ripped off his shirt and dived into the water.
Pictures had been ripped from the walls.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
3
[transitive] to take something from someone in a way that seems unfair
rip something from someone:
She saw a second gold medal cruelly ripped from her grasp yesterday.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
4
computing to copy music from a website or CD to a computer or hand-held device
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip

phrases

let rip
informal
1. 1
  to suddenly become angry with someone and shout at them
  She lost her temper and let rip at them.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
2. 2
  to start to do something with a lot of energy
  When the music started they let rip, dancing and jumping around.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
3. 3
  British very informal to let gas come out of your bottom
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
let something rip
mainly American informal
to make a vehicle move very fast
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip
rip the heart out of something
mainly journalism
to destroy or seriously damage something
These changes will rip the heart out of the island’s economy.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of rip

phrasal verbs

This is the British English definition of rip. View American English definition of rip.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to American English.

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