rift

English

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• IPA: /rɪft/
• Rhymes: -ɪft

Etymology 1

Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Danish/Norwegian rift 'breach', Old Norse rífa 'to tear'. More at rive.

Noun

Wikipedia rift (plural rifts)

1. A chasm or fissure.

   My marriage is in trouble, the fight created a rift between us and we can't reconnect.

   The Grand Canyon is a rift in the Earth's surface, but is smaller than some of the undersea ones.

2. A break in the clouds, fog, mist etc., which allows light through.
   • 1931, William Faulkner, Sanctuary, Vintage 1993, p. 130:

     I have but one rift in the darkness, that is that I have injured no one save myself by my folly, and that the extent of that folly you will never learn.

Translations

• Finnish: rako, halkeama, repeämä

Verb

rift (third-person singular simple present rifts, present participle rifting, simple past and past participle rifted)

1. To form a rift.

Etymology 2

From Old Norse rypta.

Verb

rift (third-person singular simple present rifts, present participle rifting, simple past and past participle rifted)

1. (obsolete except Scotland and northern UK) To belch.

Anagrams

• frit
• FTIR

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Scots

Etymology

From Old Norse rypta.

Verb

tae rift (third-person singular simple present rifts, present participle riftin, simple past riftit, past participle riftit)

1. to belch, burp