Meanings
rave1
plural raves
- countableinformalAn enthusiastic review (such as of a play).
It was the critic's rave that made me want to see the show.
1 more example
The first-night audience, yes. The first-night reviewers, not exactly. The notices have so far been mixed, only The Financial Times having delivered itself of an unequivocal rave.
1989, The New York Times Theater Reviews, 1920-, volume 18, page 167Synonyms: raving review
- uncountableentertainmentThe genres of electronic dance music made to be played in rave parties.
I danced to rave music all night.
1 more example
Maybe I wear baggies / And white socks with flip-flops / Maybe I don't like listening to rave / And I'm not on the social mountaintops
2009, Chrysalis Experiential Academy, Mind Harvesting, page 109
present singular third person raves · participle present raving · participle past raved · past raved
- intransitiveTo be mentally unclear; to be delirious; to talk or act irrationally; to be wild, furious, or raging.
Have I not cause to rave and beat my breast?
1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, Act IV, scene i, page 471 more example
The mingled torrent of redcoats and tartans went raving down the valley to the gorge of Killiecrankie.
1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XIII, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC - intransitiveTo speak or write wildly or incoherently.
"She is in trance. Your daughter, sir, is a powerful medium." "A medium! You are raving."
1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019Synonyms: rant
- intransitive"of"; "for"; "against" or (formerly) "on"; "of"; "for"; "against" or (formerly) "on"To talk or otherwise express oneself with excessive enthusiasm, passion or excitement.
He raved about her beauty.
3 more examples
The Lisbon mob, inflamed by the newspapers, and excited by the example of Brazil, raved a day or two for a republic
1890, The Review of Reviews, volume 1, Office of the Review of Reviews, page 94The hallowed scene / Which others rave on, though they know it not.
1812, Lord Byron, “Canto I”, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. A Romaunt, London: […] [F]or John Murray, […]; William Blackwood, Edinburgh; and John Cumming, Dublin; by Thomas Davison, […], →OCLC, stanza LXII“A beautiful country!” “I suppose it is. Everybody says so.” “Your cousin Feenix raves about it, Edith,” interposed her mother from her couch.
1846 October 1 – 1848 April 1, Charles Dickens, Dombey and Son, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1848, →OCLC - transitiveTo speak (a message) with intense enthusiasm, passion or excitement.
She raved that she must seek revenge against the wrongdoers.
3 more examples
The Berkeley Courier critic, an Englishwoman, raved: "A new company has started up in our midst, and they provided me last Saturday evening with the best theatrical experience I have had in a very long time, maybe ever..."
1985, Helen Epstein, Tina Packer Builds a Theatre, Plunkett Lake Press"Paloma, Paloma!" raved a delirious backer. "Paloma for a thousand!"
1923 September, Harley P. Lathrop, McClure's Magazine, S.S. McClure, page 28some-times she raved that she cared nought for the future happiness of Ram Ruoy and would not go.
1909, The Word, volume 9, Theosophical Publishing Company, page 127 - obsoleteTo rush wildly or furiously.
Under a mightie rocke, gainst which do rave The roaring billowes in their proud disdaine
1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto VIII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC - intransitiveTo attend a rave (dance party).
The situation with Tommy's parents made me grateful my parents hadn't caught on to my partying that summer. How had I gotten away with raving every weekend, and sometimes on Thursday nights too?
2021, Samantha Durbin, Raver Girl: Coming of Age in the 90s
rave2
present singular third person raves · participle present raving · participle past raved · past raved
rave3
plural raves
- One of the upper side pieces of the frame of a wagon body or a sleigh.
The main lever rests upon the rave when not in use.
1875, Official Gazette of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, page 3453 more examples
It was astonishing to see how he had gnawed the rave of the sled.
1851, Harper's New Monthly Magazine, volume 3, page 519Next I weld a collar on, A, to keep the brake in place when on the sled; then make a two-eyed bolt to fasten the brake to the rave.
1891, Milton Thomas Richardson, Practical Blacksmithing, page 192The superstructure of the tender is modified by the removal of the side raves, and compartments for the fire-irons are formed on each side of the coal bunker.
1956 April, “"Merchant Navy" Class Pacific Modified”, in Railway Magazine, page 212
rave4
- obsoletepastsimple past of rive
Rave5
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAn enthusiastic review (such as of a play).
nounA large-scale dance party with strobe lights and fast-paced electronic dance music, often illegally organized open-air or in underground venues.
verbTo speak or write wildly or incoherently.
More synonyms by meaning
verbtalk in a noisy, excited, or declamatory manner
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
rave · noun, verb
- Old Frenchraver
- Middle Englishraven“to rave; talk like a madman”
- Englishrave
From Middle English raven (“to rave; talk like a madman”), from Old French raver, variant of resver, of uncertain origin. Compare rave below, and rove.
More words from Middle English, Old French
Full word history & related roots →rave · verb
- Proto-Indo-European*webʰ-“to move, swarm, waft”
- Proto-Germanic*wab(b)ōną“to sway, waver, swing, shake, wobble, totter, reel, careen”
- Old Norseráfa“to wander, roam”
- Middle Englishraven
- Englishrave
From northern Middle English raven, from Old Norse ráfa (“to wander, roam”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Perhaps from a dissimilation of Proto-Germanic *wab(b)ōną (“to sway, waver, swing, shake, wobble, totter, reel, careen”), from Proto-Indo-European *webʰ- (“to move, swarm, waft”). Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk rava (“to wander, be delirious”). Doublet of rove. Compare also Middle Dutch reven (“to utter nonsense, rave, be drowsy”) (whence modern Dutch revelen (“to rave, talk nonsense”), Middle Low German rēven (“to be crazy, think and talk nonsensically”), Middle High German reben (“to move about, dream, be confused”) (compare Alemannic German räbeln (“to make loud noise”)).
More words from Middle English, Old Norse, Proto-Germanic
Full word history & related roots →rave · noun
English dialect raves, or rathes (“a frame laid on a wagon, for carrying hay, etc.”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic هذيان, احتفل
- هذيان (hadhyān)dance party
- احتفل (iḥtafala)to attend a rave
Bulgarian възторжена критика, говоря несвързано
- възторжена критика (văztoržena kritika)enthusiastic review
- говоря несвързано (govorja nesvărzano)to speak or write incoherently
- говоря възторжено (govorja văztorženo)to talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
Chinese Mandarin 狂野派對 /狂野派对
- 狂野派對 /狂野派对 (kuángyě pàiduì)dance party
Finnish ylistys, reivit
- ylistysenthusiastic review
- reivitdance party
- houriato speak or write incoherently
- horistato speak or write incoherently
- höpistäto speak or write incoherently
- höpöttääto speak or write incoherently
- ylistääto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- reivatato attend a rave
French rave
- ravedance party
German Schwärmerei, schwärmerische Kritik
- Schwärmereienthusiastic review
- schwärmerische Kritikenthusiastic review
- schwärmerische Rezensionenthusiastic review
- Ravedance party
- tobento speak or write incoherently
- rasento speak or write incoherently
- schwärmento talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- phantasierento talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- ravento attend a rave
Italian critica entusiasta, elogio
- critica entusiastaenthusiastic review
- elogioenthusiastic review
- orgiadance party
- baldoriadance party
- ravedance party
- delirareto speak or write incoherently
- farneticareto speak or write incoherently
- sragionareto speak or write incoherently
- vaneggiareto speak or write incoherently
Japanese レイブ, レイヴ
- レイブ (reibu)dance party
- レイヴ (reivu)dance party
Latin ālūcinor
- ālūcinorto speak or write incoherently
Māori tīhāhā, hakahaka
- tīhāhāto speak or write incoherently
- hakahakato speak or write incoherently
- tupehauto speak or write incoherently
- rūtāto speak or write incoherently
- pahupahuto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
Portuguese rave, devanear
- ravedance party
- devanearto speak or write incoherently
- delirarto speak or write incoherently
- desvairarto speak or write incoherently
- tresvairarto speak or write incoherently
- tresloucarto speak or write incoherently
- malucarto speak or write incoherently
Russian рейв, расхва́ливать
- рейв (rejv)dance party
- расхва́ливать (rasxválivatʹ)to talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- быть в восто́рге от (bytʹ v vostórge ot)to talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
Spanish rave, desvariar
- ravedance party
- desvariarto speak or write incoherently
- delirarto speak or write incoherently
- disparatarto speak or write incoherently
- devanearto speak or write incoherently
- desbarrarto speak or write incoherently
- no dejar de hablar deto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- poner por las nubesto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- alabarto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- elogiarto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- decir maravillas deto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- ponderarto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- poner en las nubesto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
Swedish rejv
- rejvdance party
Tamil ரேவு
- ரேவு (rēvu)dance party
Thai เพ้อ, พร่ำเพ้อ
- เพ้อ (pə́ə)to speak or write incoherently
- พร่ำเพ้อto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
- รำพันto talk with unreasonable enthusiasm or excessive passion; followed by about
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with rave
Anagrams
Cite this entry
rave. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rave
“rave.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rave. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “rave,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rave.
Source: rave on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.