Etymology

ripple

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Today it means: A moving disturbance, or undulation, in the surface of a fluid. Full definition →

Middle English *ripelen
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ripple · noun, verb1

From an alteration of rimple.

ripple · verb2

  1. Middle English · inherited from*ripelen
  2. English todayripple

From Middle English *ripelen, repulen, equivalent to rip + -le (frequentative suffix).

ripple · noun, verb3

  1. Middle English · inherited fromripplen
  2. English todayripple

Compare German Low German Repel, Dutch repel, German Riffel, extended forms (with instrumental or diminutive -le) of Low German Repe (“ripple”), Dutch repe (“ripple”). Compare also Dutch repen, German reffen, Swedish repa (“to beat; ripple”). The verb is from Middle English ripplen, rypelen. Compare Low German repelen, Dutch repelen, German riffeln.

ripple · noun4

Dialectal form of thripple.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.