ruffle

C2+ Topic:Materials & Substances

US /ˈrʌfəl/ UK /ˈrʌfəl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to disturb the smoothness of; to annoy; a gathered frill of fabric

A breeze came to ruffle the calm surface of the pond.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to disturb the smoothness... disturb disordertousleannoy irritate frill flounce

Opposites

smooth calm soothe

Word family

Forms unruffled

Derived forms ruffledrufflingrufflerruffly

Related forms riffle ripple

Etymology

From Middle English ruffelen ('to disturb, disorder'), of uncertain origin, possibly of Low German or Scandinavian origin akin to Old Norse hrufla ('to scratch').

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# ruffle

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈrʌfəl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈrʌfəl/

## Meanings
1. to disturb the smoothness of; to annoy; a gathered frill of fabric

## Examples
- A breeze came to ruffle the calm surface of the pond.

## Synonyms
- disturb
- disorder
- tousle
- annoy
- irritate
- frill
- flounce

## Antonyms
- smooth
- calm
- soothe

## Derived Forms
- ruffled
- ruffling
- ruffler
- ruffly

## Related Forms
- riffle
- ripple

## Etymology
From Middle English ruffelen ('to disturb, disorder'), of uncertain origin, possibly of Low German or Scandinavian origin akin to Old Norse hrufla ('to scratch').

## AI Etymology
Ruffle comes from Middle English ruffelen ('to disturb, disorder'), of uncertain origin, possibly of Low German or Scandinavian origin akin to Old Norse hrufla ('to scratch'). Older glosses in the chain include "to disturb, disorder" and "to scratch", which help explain the semantic range of the modern word. Morphologically, ruffle is best read as borrowing and uncertain formation, yielding an English verb and noun shaped by both form history and later usage. In current English it functions as a verb and noun, with the sense "to disturb the smoothness of; to annoy; a gathered frill of fabric". English derivatives include ruffled, ruffling, ruffler, and ruffly; related forms include riffle and ripple. The result is an English verb and noun whose etymology preserves the older forms while supporting the word's specialized modern meaning.

## Topics
- Materials & Substances

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ruffle

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