riddled

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word riddled. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word riddled, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say riddled in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word riddled you have here. The definition of the word riddled will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofriddled, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

English

Pronunciation

Verb

riddled

  1. simple past and past participle of riddle

Adjective

riddled (comparative more riddled, superlative most riddled)

  1. (also figurative) Damaged throughout by holes.
    • 2024 March 20, Conrad Landin, “"Farcical" Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act isn't working”, in RAIL, number 1005, page 25:
      When the legislation was debated by the House of Commons, Labour Deputy Leader Angela Rayner said it was "riddled with holes", while former Conservative Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg said it was "badly written".
  2. Having (something) spread throughout, as if by an infestation.
    1. Taking a noun complement construed with the preposition with.
      Synonym: lousy with
      Coordinate term: peppered with
      The minister claimed that the old benefits system was riddled with abuse and fraud.
      • 2023 November 17, Blake Montgomery, “White House condemns Elon Musk’s ‘abhorrent’ antisemitic tweets”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
        Another anti-extremism organization, The Center for Countering Digital Hate, filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by X on Thursday, calling the suit “riddled with legal deficiencies”.
    2. Taking a noun complement that precedes the adjective, forming a compound.
      Synonym: -ridden
      a hole-riddled sweater
      • 2008, Joan London, The Good Parents, Random House Australia, →ISBN, page 235:
        They took a swig each from an old bottle of sherry and ate some stale digestive biscuits sealed in a tin in the mouse-riddled cupboards.

Anagrams