■ adjective
1》 (of fruit or grain) ready for harvesting and eating.
↘(of a cheese or wine) fully matured.
2》 ( ~ for ) having arrived at a fitting time for.
↘( ~ with ) full of.
3》 (of a person's age) advanced.
4》 informal (of a person's language) coarse.
5》 (of a female fish or insect) ready to lay eggs or spawn.
Derivatives
~ly adverb
~ness noun
Origin
OE rīpe , of W. Gmc origin.