Question 1 · Quick check
ripen
CEFRB2
/ˈɹaɪpən/
verb
Türkçe translations
Translating…
In plain English
- 01
verb
To become fully grown and ready to eat or use.
- 02
verb
Extra detailTo approach or come to perfection.
Examples
She watched the gardens grow, and she watched the apples turn red and ripen.
We hope that the jabuticabas ripen soon.
At a glance
Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale
- Senses
- 5
- Parts of speech
- 1
- Citations
- 4
Deep Dive
verb
Extra meaningsTo cause (something) to mature; to make ripe
to grow ripe; to become mature (said of grain, fruit, flowers etc.)
To mature; to fit or prepare; to bring to perfection
More examples
In contextYanni picked the figs just as they started to ripen.
Grapes ripen in the sun.
The warm sun ripened the corn.
Quick test
Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.
Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.
Nearby
Origin
verb
From Middle English *ripenen, extended form of ripen, from Old English rīpian. In the modern form, equivalent to ripe + -en (inchoative and factitive suffix). As in several other verbs, the alteration seems to have occurred during the time when the infinitive and plural ending -en was in the process of being lost (and was thus open to reinterpretation). The earliest attestation is deverbal Middle English ripening (“causing ripeness, ripening”).