• Rife

    Pronunciation

    • UK IPA: /ɹaɪf/Rhymes: -aɪf

    Origin

    From Middle English, from Old English rīfe, rȳfe ("rife, abundant, frequent"), from Proto-Germanic *rīfijaz ("generous"), from Proto-Indo-European *rēip-, *rēib- ("motley"). Cognate with West Frisian rju ("rife, much"), Low German rive ("abundant, munificent"), Dutch rijf ("abundant, copious"), Norwegian riv ("rife"), Icelandic rífr ("rife, munificent"), Icelandic reifa ("to bestow").

    Full definition of rife

    Adjective

    rife

    1. Widespread, common (especially of unpleasant or harmful things).Smallpox was rife after the siege had been lifted.
      • ArbuthnotBefore the plague of London, inflammations of the lungs were rife and mortal.
      • MiltonThe tumult of loud mirth was rife.
      • 1900, Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams, Avon Books, (translated by James Strachey) pg. 170:The 'denominational considerations' mentioned below relate, of course, to anti-Semitic feeling, which was already rife in Vienna during the last years of the nineteenth century.
      • 2013, Daniel Taylor, Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic climbs highest to sink Benfica (in The Guardian, 15 May 2013)http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/may/15/benfica-chelsea-europa-leagueThey will have to reflect on a seventh successive defeat in a European final while Chelsea try to make sense of an eccentric season rife with controversy and bad feeling but once again one finishing on an exhilarating high.
    2. Abounding; present in large numbers, plentiful.These woodlands are rife with red deer.
    3. (obsolete) Having power; active; nimble.
      • J. WebsterWhat! I am rife a little yet.

    Adverb

    rife

    1. Plentifully, abundantly.The snowdrops grow rife on the slopes of Mount Pembroke.

    Anagrams

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