rid
Meanings
Verb
- relieve from
- "Rid the house of pests"
- Followed by of: to free (oneself or someone, or a place) from an annoyance or hindrance.
- Followed by away, from, or out of: to remove (oneself or someone, or something, that is annoying, troublesome, or unwanted).
- Often followed by from, of, or out of: to free or release, or to rescue or save, (oneself or someone, or something).
- To clear (a place or way); especially, to clear (land) of trees, undergrowth, etc.
- Sometimes followed by away: to destroy or kill (someone).
- Sometimes followed by up: to remove obstacles or refuse from (a place); to clean, to clear out; specifically, to clear or empty (the stomach).
- Followed by up: to eradicate (something); to root out, to uproot.
- Sometimes followed by away or off: to complete or get through (a task, or work).
- Often followed by up: to put (a place, such as a room or a table) in order; to clear, to tidy.
- To dismiss (someone) who has attended on a person; (reflexive) to remove (oneself) from a person's presence after attending to them.
- To settle (a disagreement).
- Followed by of: to deprive (oneself or someone) of something; to strip.
- To get away from or get out of (a place); to escape.
- To clear land or some other place.
- To clear or empty the stomach; also, to clear the throat.
- Of work: to be completed.
- simple past and past participle of ride
Adj
- Chiefly of a place: which has been ridded (sense 1.4.1) or cleared; rid-up.
- As the second word in a compound: synonym of ridden (“full of; also, dominated, oppressed, or plagued by”).
- Only in well-rid: of a horse: ridden.
Noun
- Progress which has been made; also, speed.
- Loose earth, rubble, etc., on the surface of a quarry which must be removed before digging can begin; rid-work.
Origin / Etymology
The verb is derived from Middle English ridden (“to remove debris, obstructions, etc., from (a place), to clear; to complete (something unfinished); to free (someone or something); to relieve (someone); etc.”), probably from Old English *ryddan (“to remove debris, obstructions, etc., from (a place), to clear”) (the past participle form ġeryd is attested), from Proto-Germanic *riudijaną (“to clear”), from Proto-Indo-European *rewdʰ- (“to clear land”), or possibly from *Hrew- (“to dig out, tear out; to open; to acquire”). The verb was probably also influenced by the following:
* Middle English redden (“to rescue (someone), deliver, save; to rid (someone) of a burden; to free (someone)”) (from which redd (obsolete except Northern England, Scotland) is partly derived), from Old English hreddan (“to deliver, rescue, save; to free; to recover; to take away”), from Proto-West Germanic *hraddjan (“to rescue, save”), from Proto-Germanic *hradjaną (“to rescue, save; to free; to loosen”), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kret- (“to move quickly; to rattle; to shake”); and
* Middle English reden (“to arrange; to get ready, prepare; to put in order, tidy; to remove debris, obstructions, etc., from (a place), to clear; to unblock; etc.”) (whence rede (chiefly Scotland, archaic)), from Old English rǣdan, Early Old English rēdan, from Proto-West Germanic *raidijan (“to arrange”), from Proto-Germanic *raidijaną (“to arrange”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂rey- (“to arrange; to count, count out”).
The adjective is derived from rid, the past participle of the verb. The noun is derived from the verb.
As regards noun sense 1 (“progress which has been made; speed”), compare verb sense 1.4.5 (“to complete or get through (a task, or work)”).
cognates
* Dutch redden (“to save, deliver”)
* German retten (“to save, deliver”), reuten (“to clear”), roden (“to clear”)
* Old Frisian hredda (“to save”)
* Old Norse hrōðja (“to clear, strip”), Old Norse ryðja (“to clear, empty”)
Synonyms
Scrabble Score: 4
rid is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL wordrid is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
rid is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary