Definition of RAMPANT

rampant

Meanings

Adjective Satellite

  • unrestrained and violent
    • "rampant aggression"
  • rearing on left hind leg with forelegs elevated and head usually in profile
    • "a lion rampant"
  • (of a plant) having a lush and unchecked growth
    • "a rampant growth of weeds"

Adj

  • Rearing on both hind legs with the forelegs extended.
  • Rearing up, especially on its hind leg(s), with a foreleg raised and in profile.
  • Tilted, said of an arch with one side higher than the other, or a vault whose two abutments are located on an inclined plane.
  • Unrestrained or unchecked, usually in a negative manner.
  • Rife, or occurring widely, frequently or menacingly.

Adv

  • Rampantly.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English rampand, rampend, present participle of rampen (“to rise by climbing, shoot up, sprout, sty, ascend”), from Old French ramper (“to creep, climb”) (see below), equivalent to ramp + -and or ramp + -ant. Recorded since 1382, "standing on the hind legs" (as in heraldry), later, "fierce, ravenous" (1387). Compare Scots rampand (“rampant”).
Alternatively from Middle English *rampant, from Old French rampant, the present participle of ramper (“to creep, climb”), equivalent to ramp + -ant. Old French ramper derives from Frankish *rampōn, *hrampōn (“to hook, grapple, climb”), from *rampa, *hrampa (“hook, claw, talon”), from Proto-Germanic *hrempaną (“to curve, shrivel, shrink, wrinkle”).

Synonyms

rearing

Scrabble Score: 11

rampant is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
rampant is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
rampant is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 14

rampant is a valid Words With Friends word