ˌJack the ˈRipper BrE AmE
the name given to a man who killed and cut up the bodies of several ↑ prostitute s (=women who are paid to have sex) in the Whitechapel area of London in 1888. The police never caught him and never discovered who he was. There are many books and films based on his crimes, and the name ‘the Ripper’ is now sometimes used to describe criminals who murder people in a similar way. ⇨ ↑ Yorkshire Ripper