Etymology

riff

R1I1F4F4

Today it means: A repeated melody line in a song, usually instrumental but sometimes vocal. Full definition →

Middle English *rif ← Old English hrif ← Proto-West Germanic *hrif
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

riff · noun, verb1

Uncertain. Perhaps a clipping of riffle, or an alteration of refrain.

riff · noun2

  1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*krep-“body”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*hrefaz“body; torso; belly”
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*hrif
  4. Old English · inherited fromhrif“the belly; womb”
  5. Middle English · inherited from*rif
  6. English todayriff

From Middle English *rif (found only in midrif), from Old English hrif (“the belly; womb”), from Proto-West Germanic *hrif, from Proto-Germanic *hrefaz (“body; torso; belly”), from Proto-Indo-European *krep- (“body”). Distant doublet of corpus, corpse, and corse.

Words from the same roots

Middle English*rif all →

reef

Proto-West Germanic*hrif all →

reef

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.