riff
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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While Warren and the bill’s co-sponsors shouldn’t lean too hard on an extemporaneous riff from a podcaster, the germ of a promising strategy is there.
From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026
Liam's riff on Mick Jagger's creaking limbs is worth the price of admission alone.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
She added that there was a reason Matty Healy continually referenced the song’s addictive piano riff for the 1975.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
“I used to be pure,” he sings over the crunchy riff, continuing, “I just try to be good now.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Harry was running his fingers over the piano keys in a dramatic thrumming riff, either Chopin or Liszt—I wasn’t sure which.
From "Confessions of a Murder Suspect" by James Patterson
The badass riffs in this particular case are courtesy of Roman Morello, the 15-year-old son of our interviewee, who joined his dad’s band when he was 13.
From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2026
The album is loaded with Anthrax trademarks — serrated, crunchy riffs, soaring lead vocals, bludgeoning beats, and scorching guitar — but there are also galactic noise effects, angular song structures and atypical chord configurations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
A powerhouse version of Dangerous Woman claps like thunder; and Grande's vocal riffs on Safety Net are so tremendously colossal they should be registered as the eighth wonder of the world.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Led by Busby’s machine-gun mandolin riffs and hair-raising tenor, the band had a hard-edged bluegrass-style sound that was a far cry from the homogenized, syrupy country-and-western slop heard around town.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
A high-pitched howl wailed over frenetic guitar riffs, followed by booming drums.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
President Donald Trump riffed on his White House predecessors in a children's podcast Friday, while also joking about his weight and musing as to whether his body is swimsuit-ready.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
Bono has, for decades, riffed on this concept: “America isn’t just a country, it’s an idea.”
From Salon ● Mar. 10, 2026
During a midweek livestream, Adams had riffed off the results of a poll that asked whether people agreed with the statement “It’s OK to be white.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2026
At a crypto event in June, a video that riffed on an old movie showed Tenev speeding through the French Riviera in a convertible.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 26, 2025
Magic Jay, Jimmy L’s secret agent name, was riffed from his favorite basketball player, the legendary Magic Johnson.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
The audience instantly understands that this is Schoenbrun riffing on their own intellectually minded approach, and that Kris is a self-insert character for the movie’s writer-director.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
An avid rock drummer, Yang called his startup “Dark Side of the Moon” in Chinese, riffing off the Pink Floyd album.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
The bar is decorated with references to China's AI boom, with logos of the country's major labs on the walls and the menu full of jokes riffing on tech jargon.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
The director said: "As Ryan started talking about his vision for this character, we started riffing, and I finally said, 'bro, let's ride', so guys, we'll see you in 2028."
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
He was riffing about on his acoustic guitar.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
