When fruit is ripe, it has reached the perfect stage of development where it's ready to eat. A ripe banana turns yellow and sweet, while an unripe one stays green and starchy. Ripe strawberries are deep red and juicy, not pale and hard. You can usually tell when fruit is ripe by its color, smell, and how it feels when you gently squeeze it.

The word also describes perfect timing for other things. A situation might be ripe for change when conditions are just right. A field of wheat turns golden when it's ripe for harvesting. You might hear someone say “the time is ripe” for a particular action, meaning circumstances have aligned perfectly.

Sometimes people use ripe to describe something fully developed in a negative way. A situation ripe for disaster means all the wrong conditions have come together. A building might be described as ripe for collapse if it's deteriorated badly.

The opposite of ripe is unripe, meaning not yet ready. Just like biting into an unripe peach leaves you disappointed, acting before the moment is ripe can lead to poor results.