W. E. B. Du Bois
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English is rife with words that have Germanic connections, many of which have been handed down to us from Old English. Rife is one of those words. Not a whole lot has changed with rife in its long history. We continue to use the word for negative things, especially those that are widespread or prevalent. Examples are "shoplifting was rife" or "the city was rife with greed and corruption." Rumors and speculation are also frequently described as "rife." But rife can also be appropriately used for good or neutral things. For example, you might speak of the summer garden being "rife" with scents.
Synonyms
Examples of rife in a Sentence
Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025
The city’s traffic is snarled, as few police officers are on patrol, and double parking is rife, residents said.
—Raja Abdulrahim, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2025
With the Shotgun 650 launching at the turn of the year, rumors were rife of upcoming models on this platform.
—New Atlas, 5 Nov. 2024
Leonard said that at the beginning of his work organizing matches, tensions were rife, particularly between Spanish-speaking migrants from South and Central America and French-speaking migrants from west Africa.
—Zoe Sottile, CNN, 21 Sep. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near rife
Cite this Entry
“Rife.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rife. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
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rife
adjective
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