English word origin

Etymology of riff

Uncertain. Perhaps a clipping of riffle, or an alteration of refrain.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

A repeated melody line in a song, usually instrumental but sometimes vocal. · A clever or witty remark. · A variation on something. · A spoof.

verb

To improvise in the performance or practice of an art, especially by expanding on or making novel use of traditional themes. · To riffle. · To tell jokes over a movie or similar performance.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Uncertain. Perhaps a clipping of riffle, or an alteration of refrain.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain"
    },
    {
      "name": "clipping",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "riffle",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "clipping of riffle"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "riffle",
      "riffle#English"
    ],
    [
      "refrain",
      "refrain#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A repeated melody line in a song, usually instrumental but sometimes vocal.",
        "A clever or witty remark.",
        "A variation on something.",
        "A spoof."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "3f4f035f409769e62f524ef980069c8837da786e1e09beaf05daa3ec93d9282d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "5618ab9f5fd20e94f62e9f95bbfe9224c3271d1906c48dadf57506e52da11c30",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 461416
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To improvise in the performance or practice of an art, especially by expanding on or making novel use of traditional themes.",
        "To riffle.",
        "To tell jokes over a movie or similar performance."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "f7670dfa24d53a64c6452008a333d5e1f5c072222af851ccbc295e0730ce3bf8",
      "rawRecordSha256": "991a668ea966acc3f4350731513b36b74938a6c9422549d47c8abec071c28055",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 461417
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

The belly; the bowels.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English *rif (found only in midrif), from Old English hrif (“the belly; womb”), from Proto-West Germanic *hrif, from Proto-Germanic *hrefaz (“body; torso; belly”), from Proto-Indo-European *krep- (“body”). Distant doublet of corpus, corpse, and corse.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Root classification mention*krep-ine-pro
Inherited-form mention*rifenm
Inherited-form mentionhrifang · the belly; womb
Inherited-form mention*hrifgmw-pro
Inherited-form mention*hrefazgem-pro · body; torso; belly
Inherited-form mention*krep-ine-pro · body
Doublet mentioncorpusen
Doublet mentioncorpseen
Doublet mentioncorseen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*krep-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "*rif"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English *rif"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "hrif",
        "t": "the belly; womb"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English hrif (“the belly; womb”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*hrif"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *hrif"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*hrefaz",
        "t": "body; torso; belly"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *hrefaz (“body; torso; belly”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*krep-",
        "t": "body"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *krep- (“body”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "corpus",
        "3": "corpse",
        "4": "corse",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "doublet of corpus, corpse, and corse"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*rif",
      "Reconstruction:Middle English/rif"
    ],
    [
      "midrif",
      "midrif#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "hrif",
      "hrif#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*hrif",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/hrif"
    ],
    [
      "*hrefaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/hrefaz"
    ],
    [
      "*krep-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/krep-"
    ],
    [
      "corpus",
      "corpus#English"
    ],
    [
      "corpse",
      "corpse#English"
    ],
    [
      "corse",
      "corse#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "The belly; the bowels."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "recordId": "71227e301c066f2528c549411638cd61d0e72ba5ad5ab1c372ffccf74d7b1945",
      "rawRecordSha256": "b55096b3135ba4fe946dbb0b87c1ad00bea661615248126184d27aded4c96f08",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 461418
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for riff →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-cmlmZg