2 N‑COUNT A righty is someone, especially a sports player, who is right-handed. [mainly AM , INFORMAL ] □ I had a bit of trouble getting used to a serve coming from a righty.
rig|id /r I dʒ I d/
1 ADJ Laws, rules, or systems that are rigid cannot be changed or varied, and are therefore considered to be rather severe. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ Several colleges in our study have rigid rules about student conduct. ● ri|gid|ity /r I dʒ I d I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …the rigidity of government policy. ● rig|id|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ The caste system was rigidly enforced.
2 ADJ If you disapprove of someone because you think they are not willing to change their way of thinking or behaving, you can describe them as rigid . [DISAPPROVAL ] □ She was a fairly rigid person who had strong religious views.
3 ADJ A rigid substance or object is stiff and does not bend, stretch, or twist easily. □ …rigid plastic containers. ● ri|gid|ity N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …the strength and rigidity of glass.
rig|ma|role /r I gməroʊl/ (rigmaroles ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] You can describe a long and complicated process as a rigmarole . [DISAPPROVAL ] □ Then the whole rigmarole starts over again.
ri|gor /r I gə r / → see rigour
ri|gor mor|tis /r I gə r mɔː r t I s/ N‑UNCOUNT In a dead body, when rigor mortis sets in, the joints and muscles become very stiff.
rig|or|ous /r I gərəs/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A test, system, or procedure that is rigorous is very thorough and strict. □ The selection process is based on rigorous tests of competence and experience. ● rig|or|ous|ly ADV □ …rigorously conducted research.
2 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If someone is rigorous in the way that they do something, they are very careful and thorough. □ [+ in ] He is rigorous in his control of expenditure.
rig|our /r I gə r / (rigours ) in AM, use rigor 1 N‑PLURAL If you refer to the rigours of an activity or job, you mean the difficult, demanding, or unpleasant things that are associated with it. □ [+ of ] He found the rigours of the tour too demanding.
2 N‑UNCOUNT If something is done with rigour , it is done in a strict, thorough way. □ The new current affairs series addresses challenging issues with freshness and rigour.
rile /ra I l/ (riles , riling , riled ) VERB If something riles you, it makes you angry. □ [V n] Cancellations and late departures rarely rile him. ● riled ADJ □ He saw I was riled.
Riley /ra I li/ also Reilly PHRASE If you say that someone is living the life of Riley , you mean that they have a very easy and comfortable life with few worries.
rim /r I m/ (rims )
1 N‑COUNT The rim of a container such as a cup or glass is the edge that goes all the way round the top. □ [+ of ] She looked at him over the rim of her glass.
2 N‑COUNT The rim of a circular object is its outside edge. □ …a round mirror with white metal rim.
3 → see also rimmed , -rimmed
rim|less /r I mləs/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] Rimless glasses are glasses which have no frame around the lenses or which have a frame only along the top of the lenses.
rimmed /r I md/
1 ADJ If something is rimmed with a substance or colour, it has that substance or colour around its border. □ The plates and glassware were rimmed with gold.
2 → see also rim , -rimmed
-rimmed /-r I md/
1 COMB -rimmed combines with nouns to form adjectives that describe something as having a border or frame made of a particular substance. □ …horn-rimmed spectacles.
2 → see also rim , rimmed
rind /ra I nd/ (rinds )
1 N‑VAR The rind of a fruit such as a lemon or orange is its thick outer skin. □ …grated lemon rind.
2 N‑VAR The rind of cheese or bacon is the hard outer edge which you do not usually eat. □ Discard the bacon rind and cut each rasher in half.
ring
➊ TELEPHONING OR MAKING A SOUND
➋ SHAPES AND GROUPS
➊ ring ◆◆◇ /r I ŋ/ (rings , ringing , rang , rung )
→ Please look at category 12 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 VERB When you ring someone, you phone them. [mainly BRIT ] □ [V n] He rang me at my mother's. □ [V ] I would ring when I got back to the hotel. □ [V adv] She has rung home just once. □ [V + for ] Could someone ring for a taxi? ● PHRASAL VERB Ring up means the same as ring . □ [V n P ] You can ring us up anytime. □ [V P ] John rang up and invited himself over for dinner. □ [V P + about ] A few months ago I rang up about some housing problems. □ [V P n] Nobody rings up a doctor in the middle of the night for no reason. [in AM, usually use call ]
2 VERB When a phone rings , it makes a sound to let you know that someone is phoning you. □ [V ] As soon as he got home, the phone rang. ● N‑COUNT Ring is also a noun. □ After at least eight rings, an ancient-sounding maid answered the phone. ● ring|ing N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] She was jolted out of her sleep by the ringing of the phone.