Link Centre Dictionary

rive

UK/ɹaɪv/ uncommon archaic rare

verb

1.

tear or be torn violently

  • “The curtain ripped from top to bottom”
  • “pull the cooked chicken into strips”
Synonyms
2.

separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument

  • “cleave the bone”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English riven (“to rive”), of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse rífa (“to rend, tear apart”), from Proto-Germanic *rīfaną (“to tear, scratch”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁reyp- (“to crumble, tear”). Cognate with Danish rive (“to tear”), Old Frisian rīva (“to tear”), Old English ārǣfan (“to let loose, unwrap”), Old Norse ript (“breach of contract, rift”), Norwegian Bokmål rive (“to tear”), Swedish riva (”to tear”) and Albanian rrip (“belt, rope”). More at rift.

Phrases

  • rave hook
  • riving knife

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.