I. ˈrift noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse ript breach of contract, rīfa to rive, Danish & Norwegian rift rent, fissure — more at rive
1.
a. : an opening made by cracking or splitting : fissure , crevasse
a rift in the ice
spring that gushes from a rift in a red sandstone bluff — American Guide Series: Texas
widened lattice intervals are evidently rifts in the crystal lattice, produced initially by plastic deformation — Science
broadly : any crack or flaw caused by stress or conflict — often used of minute or immaterial things
little rift within the lute — Alfred Tennyson
first split Western man's acts from his ideals, for only by such a rift in his mind could he hold on to these mutually destroying beliefs — Lillian Smith
b.
(1) : a normal fault ; especially : one along which movement has occurred in comparatively recent geologic time
(2) : a depression or valley along the trace of a fault or fault zone — compare rift valley
2. : an open space : a clear interval
glimpsed occasionally through rifts in the dense foliage — American Guide Series: Pennsylvania
high rifts of blue, white-cloud-dappled sky — Flora Thompson
had one of those rifts of lucidity in which I saw him whole and limited — Mary Austin
3. : wood split or cut radially from the log
rift flooring
4. : the direction of easiest splitting especially of a granite — used especially by quarrymen
5. : a divergence (as of interests or beliefs) resulting in disagreement or dispute
this little rift it was that had widened to a now considerable breach — H.G.Wells
a growing rift and an atmosphere of suspicion between the two parties — Farmer's Weekly (South Africa)
developments in the industrial crisis which reveal significant rifts among his own supporters — New Statesman & Nation
Synonyms: see breach
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English riften, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse ripta to break a contract, ript breach of contract
transitive verb
1.
a. : cleave , rive , split , divide
mica rifted into sheets
the mist is rifted and we can look straight at the words — R.P.Warren
b. : to saw (wood) radially from the log so as to have the annual rings perpendicular or nearly so to the face
2. : to penetrate by or as if by cleaving
the intellect is a cleaver; it discerns and rifts its way into the secret of things — H.D.Thoreau
intransitive verb
1. : to burst open : split
the clouds rifted
2. : to form a rift in the earth's crust
sedimentary deposits surviving the denudation following the rifting — E. African Agric. Journal
III. intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English riften, from Old Norse rypta; probably akin to Sanskrit rauti he roars — more at rumor
chiefly dialect : to belch or break wind
IV. noun
( -s )
Etymology: probably alteration of riff (I)
: a shallow or rocky place in a stream forming either a ford or a rapid
trout waters, where the rifts and pools harbor flashing rainbows — G.P.Manning
V. adjective
Etymology: by shortening
: rift-sawed
rift fir
rift laths