Meaning of Rip Van Winkle | Babel Free
/ˌrɪp van ˈwɪŋk(ə)l/Definitions
A Dutch-American villager who falls asleep for 20 years and wakes up to a changed world, having missed the American Revolution; (by extension) someone or something stuck in the past.
US
Examples
“That is, it makes a lot of sense to see Biden’s problems getting his plans across the finish line as being caused by the Rip Van Winkle caucus, Democrats who checked out intellectually a couple of decades ago and haven’t caught up with America as it now is.”
“The characters do seem Rip Van Winkle-like, as they stumble upon and blink in amazement at very unsurprising things. “Wow! Instagram? Podcasts?” marvels Miranda at some of Carrie’s latest endeavors, as if these were edgy new enterprises.”
“A Tory Rip Van Winkle waking from decades of sleep to look round that cabinet table now would be aghast.”
CEFR level
C1
Advanced
This word is part of the CEFR C1 vocabulary — advanced level.
This word is part of the CEFR C1 vocabulary — advanced level.