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▪ I. † riff, n.1 Obs.
[a. OF. rif et raf, rif ne raf (see Godefroy and Cotgrave). Hence also MDu. rijf ende raf (Verdam).]
In phr. riff and raff, one and all, every single bit; riff nor raff, none at all, nothing whatever.
1338R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 38 Þei tok alle riffe & raf. Ibid. 111 Þat noiþer he no hise suld chalange rif no raf. Ibid. 276 He sauh þam rif & raf comand ilka taile.
▪ II. † riff, n.2 Obs.
In 6 ryffe.
[var. of reeve n.3 1.]
A string or rope (of onions).
1509Invent. in Stocks & Bragg Mkt. Harborough Par. Rec. (1890) 233 Item ix Ryffes off Onyons.
▪ III. riff, n.3 Obs. exc. dial.
[Perh. repr. OE. hrífþo, f. hréof scabbed, leprous: but cf. also OF. rifle, F. dial. riffle in the same sense.]
A cutaneous eruption; the itch or mange.
1578J. Jones Preserv. Bodie & Soule i. xxvi. 50 Their children be not only free from riffe, and chafing, but also be endued with a fayre colour and delicate skinne. 1879–in western dial. glossaries (see Eng. Dial. Dict. s.v. Reef). 1952M. Tripp Faith is Windsock iv. 67, I believe I am right in diagnosing his dog's trouble as riff. This is invariably picked up in damp places and frequently appears in the clefts between the toes.
▪ IV. † riff, n.4 Obs.
Also 6 reefe, 7 riffe.
[Back-formation from midriff.]
The diaphragm.
1597A. M. tr. Guillemeau's Fr. Chirurg. 4/1 When the middle reefe or Diaphragma is wounded. 1656S. Holland Zara (1719) 37 And with the single thrust pierc't through the skin, ribs, and riff of this sawcy Savage. 1659D. Lloyd Leg. Capt. Jones 4 Then came his good sword.., Which pierc't skin, ribs, and riffe, and rove her heart.
▪ V. † riff, n.5 Obs. rare.
[var. of rift n.2]
A rift; a chink.
1602W. Fulbecke 1st Pt. Parall. 97, I do not thinke it possible which some affirme, that the bodies of such witches may pierce through a chinke or riffe of a wall. 1611Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. iv. §55. 442 Others say, that out of riffes in the earth, burning flames arose.
▪ VI. riff, n.7
[Abbrev. of riffle n.]
1. A simple musical phrase repeated over and over, often with a strong or syncopated rhythm, and freq. used as background to a solo improvisation. Also attrib. and in Comb.
1935[see dig v. 6 c]. 1940[see backing vbl. n. 7 b]. 1946R. Blesh Shining Trumpets xii. 277 Henderson..established the current trend of riff-swing. 1951Landfall V. 286 She never could manage riff rhythms or any jazz rhythms. 1955Jazzbook 1955 8 When played with the passion and abandon of a great orchestra like Basie's the riff is an exciting revelation; as a trick phrase in the hands of a mediocre band it becomes the most banal of musical devices. 1962J. Baldwin Another Country i. i. 16 They might swap stories of..gigs they'd played, riffs they remembered. Ibid. 20 He..beat a riff with his fingers. 1972Blues & Jazz Sept. 11/3 The saxes come in with an unoriginal but beautifully swinging riff when Fats makes his vocal entry. 1976A. Murray Stomping Blues v. 60 The actual mood of the performance..is determined by the up-tempo beat plus the riff-style call-and-response choruses. 1976Zigzag Apr. 28/1 The band shine best when they are tackling unison riffs and counter riffs with customary ease. 1978Oxford Times 31 Mar. 19/1 The harmonica introduction is unforgettable and the tune has a very catchy backing riff. 1980M. Booth Bad Track iii. 68 The sax cut in with Mel's violin scrawking against the drums and the low riff of the electronic piano.
2. In extended use: a repeated phrase, idea, or situation.
1970New Yorker 14 Nov. 166/2 He has an opportunity for some lovely comic riffs. 1972Times Lit. Suppl. 29 Dec. 1570/4 These schizoid riffs are not the half-hearted impersonations of madness..but characterizations which exhibit the mania and pain of true suffering. 1974Black World Dec. 52/2 There are some new riffs played out in this novel, riffs which are significant when measured against Baldwin's earlier novels. 1976Times Lit. Suppl. 19 Mar. 318/4 Mr Morphet has not sufficiently discussed Hodgkin's community of ideas with painters of his generation, for he uses riffs, as it were, from many of his contemporaries.
▪ VII. riff, n.8
= riffle n. 3 b.
196020th Cent. Mar. 256 The most cursory riff through the..daily and weekly press.
▪ VIII. riff
obs. variant of reef n.1 and n.2
▪ IX. riff, v.1 rare.
[Cf. riffle v. 3 and riffler2.]
†1. trans. To break up (land). Obs.
1573P. More Almanack & Prognost. C v b, Riffe up your ley grounde for Otes. Ibid. C vj, Riffe up your layed land.
2. With through = riffle v. 3 c.
1956W. H. Whyte Organization Man (1957) xxv. 347 Riff through these maps quickly, and in the few seconds..you can see in crude animation the fissures begin to widen.
▪ X. riff, v.2
[f. riff n.7]
intr. To play riffs in popular music. Also fig. (in context trans.). Hence ˈriffing ppl. a.
1955Jazzbook 1955 8 Few things were more satisfying than Jimmy Rushing shouting the blues with the band riffing away behind him. 1959C. MacInnes Absolute Beginners 158 He said life was a junction: the junction, he said, of composite opposites (he liked that group, and riffed it several times). 1966Melody Maker 7 May 13/1 The Faces storm into this new one with powerful guitar, and riffing organ. 1968Blues Unlimited Sept. 23 Horns coming in to riff nicely after the build-up. 1977Gramophone Sept. 525/2 What comes across most forcefully is the band's ability to riff fearlessly and hypnotically. |