riches

See also: Riches

English

Etymology

From Middle English riches, plural of riche (“power, wealth”), from Old English rīċe (“power, authority, dominion”). Confused with Middle English richesse (“wealth”), from Old French richesse, from riche (“rich, wealthy”), of Germanic origin, from Frankish *rīki (“rich”) from Proto-Germanic *rīkijaz (“rich, powerful”), from Proto-Indo-European *reg- (“to straighten, direct, make right”). Akin to Old High German rīhhi (“rich”) (German reich (“rich”)), Old English rīċe (“rich”), Old English racu (“explanation, reasoning”). More at rich.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɹɪt͡ʃɪz/
• Hyphenation: rich‧es
• Rhymes: -ɪtʃɪz

Noun

riches pl (plural only)

1. Money, goods, wealth, treasure.
   • 1610–1611, William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act III, scene ii], page 12:

     Cal. […] Sometimes a thouſand twangling Inſtruments
     Will hum about mine eares ; and ſometime voices,
     That if I then had wak'd after long ſleepe,
     Will make me ſleepe againe, and then in dreaming,
     The clouds methought would open, and ſhew riches
     Ready to drop vpon me, that when I wak'd
     I cri'de to dreame againe.

2. (figuratively) An abundance of anything desirable.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:wealth

Derived terms

• embarrassment of riches

Related terms

• rich

Translations

money, goods, wealth, treasure

• Armenian: հարստություն (hy) (harstutʿyun)
• Bengali: জর (zôr)
• Galician: riqueza (gl) f
• German: Reichtümer (de) pl
• Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐌱𐌴𐌹 f (gabei)
• Irish: saibhreas m
• Latin: dītiae f pl
• Latvian: bagātība f

• Polish: bogactwo (pl) n, bogactwa pl
• Russian: бога́тство (ru) n (bogátstvo)
• Sanskrit: धन्य (sa) n (dhánya)
• Scottish Gaelic: ionmhas m
• Slovene: bogastvo (sl) n, obilje n
• Spanish: riqueza (es) f
• Volapük: lieg (vo)

Anagrams

• Chiers, shicer

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French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁiʃ/

Adjective

riches

1. plural of riche

Anagrams

• chéris

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Middle English

Alternative forms

• richesse, reches

Etymology

Plural of riche.

Noun

riches (uncountable)

1. riches, wealth

Descendants

• English: riches
• Yola: reeches

References

• “riches, n. plural.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

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Norman

Adjective

riches pl

1. plural of riche (“rich”)