ready Meaning & Definition
What Does Ready Mean?
As an adjective, ready means prepared mentally or physically for some experience or action. It can also mean prepared for immediate use. As a verb, it means to make ready.
Ready: Key Facts
| Part of speech | adjective, verb |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈre-dē/ |
| Syllables | 2 |
| Synonyms | prompt, set and intelligent |
| Antonyms | unready, flat-footed and half-baked |
| Comparative / superlative | readier, readiest |
| Verb forms | readies, readying, readied |
Ready Definition (Adjective)
- prepared mentally or physically for some experience or action
- prepared for immediate use
dinner is ready
- willingly disposed : inclined
ready to agree to his proposal
- likely to do something indicated
a house that looks ready to collapse
- displayed readily and spontaneously
a ready wit
- immediately available
had ready cash
Ready as a Verb
- to make ready
Synonyms of Ready
Antonyms of Ready
Ready in a Sentence
I made ready to set out on my journey.
The troops are ready for battle.
The porridge is ready to serve.
a loaf of ready-sliced bread
The cave was like a ready-made home for us.
The seed is ready to sprout.
a ready apprehension
ready wit
a ready writer or workman
dinner is ready
ready to agree to his proposal
a house that looks ready to collapse
a ready wit
had ready cash
after studying for months, she felt ready for the bar exam
I'm ready to help, if I can
had a ready response to every one of her objections regarding the feasibility of the plan
we're hoping you have a ready solution to our networking problem
this advanced course should ready him for college
we can ready the desserts for the party a day in advance
the basketball players sat quietly in the locker room, readying themselves for the final game of the season
Word Forms & Grammar
read·i·er
read·i·est
readier
readiest
ready
read·ied
ready·ing
readied
readies
readying
readiness
readinesses
ready (comparative readier, superlative readiest)
ready (third-person singular simple present readies, present participle readying, simple past and past participle readied)
ready (countable and uncountable, plural readies)
Words That Rhyme With Ready
Origin of Ready
Origin 1: Middle English redy; akin to Old English gerǣde ready, Goth garaiths arranged
Origin 2: From Middle English redy, redi, rædiȝ, iredi, ȝerǣdi, alteration ( + -y) of earlier irēd, irede, ȝerād (“ready, prepared”), from Old English rǣde, ġerǣde (also ġerȳde) ("prepared, prompt, ready, ready for riding (horse), mounted (on a horse), skilled, simple, easy"), from Proto-Germanic *garaidijaz, *raidijaz, from base *raidaz (“ready”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂reh₁dʰ-, *h₂reh₁- (“to count, put in order, arrange, make comfortable”) and also probably conflated with Proto-Indo-European *reydʰ- (“to ride”) in the sense of "set to ride, able or fit to go, ready". Cognate with Scots readie, reddy (“ready, prepared”), West Frisian ree (“ready”), Dutch gereed (“ready”), German bereit (“ready”), Danish rede (“ready”), Swedish redo (“ready, fit, prepared”), Norwegian reiug (“ready, prepared”), Icelandic greiður (“easy, light”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌸𐍃 (garaiþs, “arranged, ordered”).
First Known Use
13th century
How to Pronounce Ready
Ready is pronounced /ˈre-dē/ and has 2 syllables, with the main stress on the first syllable (re).
Quick Answers About Ready
Is ready an adjective or a verb?
Ready is mainly used as an adjective, but it can also be used as a verb.
What is another word for ready?
Close synonyms of ready are prompt, set and intelligent. See the full list of ready synonyms and antonyms.
What is the opposite of ready?
Antonyms of ready include unready, flat-footed, half-baked and half-cocked.
What is the past tense of ready?
The past tense of ready is readied. The present participle is readying.
What are the comparative and superlative forms of ready?
The comparative form is readier and the superlative form is readiest.