ripe

Word family

Related topics: Plants, Crops, Tastes, Food

ripe /raɪp/ adjectiveadj (comparativecomp riper, superlativesupl ripest)

1 HBPTACripe fruit or crops are fully grown and ready to eat 〔水果或庄稼〕成熟的 OPP unripe

Those tomatoes aren’t ripe yet.

那些番茄还没熟。

2 be ripe for something READYto be ready for a change to happen, especially when it should have happened sooner 适宜做某事，做某事条件成熟

The police forces are ripe for reform.

改革警察队伍的时机已经成熟。

The former dock area is ripe for development.

这片昔日的码头区可以开发了。

Examples from the Corpus

be ripe for something• The time is ripe for an attempt to weaken his position.• Within six months, they in turn would be ripe for constructive torment by Lexandro's peers.• Whatever precautions a father takes, when the daughter is ripe for it, puberty will set in.• The time was ripe for major change.• The job search took him seven years, and by that time he was ripe for retirement.• If ever a songwriting team were ripe for revival, it's Bacharach and David.• Again frustrated, the two were ripe for the monetary stability Clive Davis could offer.• Gore is ripe for the plucking.• In other words, expect whispers that he is ripe for voluntary retirement in an autumn reshuffle.

3 the time is ripe (for something) SUITABLEused to say it is a very suitable time for something to happen, especially when it should have happened sooner （某事的）时机已经成熟

The time is ripe for a review of progress up to now.

是时候回顾一下目前为止所取得的进展了。

Examples from the Corpus

the time is ripe (for something)• So the time is ripe for a major overhaul of the sixth form.• As with acupuncture, this is a difficult field for research, but the time is ripe for active scientific investigations.• The time was ripe for change in the company.• Amato thinks the time is ripe for educational reform.

4 ripe old age OLD/NOT YOUNG

a) if you live to a ripe old age, you are very old when you die 很大年纪

Eat less and exercise more if you want to live to a ripe old age.

想长寿就少吃多锻炼。

b) used to show that you find it surprising or impressive that someone is doing something or has achieved something at a very young age – used humorously 年纪很小〔用于表示对某人很年轻便做或做到某事感到意外或惊叹，幽默用法〕

She was put in charge at the ripe old age of twenty-nine.

她年纪轻轻，29岁就当上了主管。

Examples from the Corpus

at the ripe old age of• Ex-wife Alana demonstrates that she's still out in front in the glamour stakes at the ripe old age of 43.

5. CTDFripe cheese has developed a strong taste and is ready to eat 〔干酪〕熟透的 SYN mature

6 especially British EnglishBrE a ripe smell is strong and unpleasant – used humorously 臭气熏天的，浓烈难闻的〔幽默用法〕

We were pretty ripe after a week of walking.

我们走了一个星期的路，身上都臭死了。

—ripeness noun [uncountableU]

Examples from the Corpus

ripe• Don't pick the apples until they're really ripe.• I checked daily, in September, until the point where they were almost ripe.• We were pretty ripe after a week of hiking.• I can taste the rich meat of venison studded with ripe apples and sweet Texas onions.• Is this melon ripe enough to eat?• It was not until they levelled out that she thought again about the possibility of living to a ripe old age.• So it seemed Meurent lived to a ripe old age.• Even when ripe, these huge fruits have a greenish yellow skin and flesh, so don't be put off.• You'll need a pound of ripe tomatoes.• The air was ripe with rhetoric, much of it aimed toward the record industry and threatening to whites.

Origin ripe

Old English

ripe adjectiveadj

Chinese

Corpus