From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishriotri‧ot1 /ˈraɪət/ ●●○ noun 1 [countable]SCPROTEST a situation in which a large crowd of people are behaving in a violent and uncontrolled way, especially when they are protesting about something urban riots prison riots His murder triggered vicious race riots (=caused by a problem between different races). police wearing riot gear (=the special clothing and equipment worn by police officers during a riot) police in bullet-proof vests and carrying riot shields (=a piece of very hard plastic which police officers stand behind to protect them)2 → run riot3 → a riot of colour4 → read (somebody) the riot actCOLLOCATIONSverbscause a riotWhen the election results were announced, it caused riots in the capital.spark off a riot (=make it start)The incident sparked off a riot which lasted for three days.quell a riot (=use force to stop it)The police marched in to quell the riots.a riot begins/breaks out/eruptsRiots broke out last month following the verdict.ADJECTIVES/NOUN + riota prison riotThe prison riots were caused by bad physical conditions and poor security.race riots (=caused by a problem between different races)In 1967, there were race riots in a number of major American cities.urban/inner-city riotsThe urban riots forced the Government to invest in the inner cities.a serious/major riotThe jail was hit by a serious riot last year.a full-scale riot (=a serious riot, not only a little fighting)The disturbance escalated into a full-scale riot.riot + NOUNriot policeThe city deployed riot police to contain the demonstration. the riot squad (=a group of police who deal with riots)Then someone called the riot squad.Demonstrators clashed with 140 riot squad officers, drawn from the police and the British army.riot gear (=special clothing worn by police dealing with a riot)Almost 1,000 officers, many in riot gear, were needed to restore order.a riot shield (=a plastic shield used by a police officer)The police moved in on the demonstration using riot shields and tear gas.riot controlAll officers are trained in riot control.
Examples from the Corpus
riot• Riot police used tear gas against the protestors.• Riots erupted in the capital after police banned two anti-government demonstrations.• Wasn't there three thousand men in Tipperary last Saturday in a riot for work, outside this very building.• A peaceful rally turned into a riot after police fired into the crowd.• This guy is a riot.• Isn't that a riot?• A riot in a drab housing project outside Paris leaves one participant on his deathbed, a victim of police brutality.• A riot broke out after a police shooting of a local man.• And loyalists claim a second inmate was blinded for 48 hours after riot squad prison officers turned high-powered hose on his face.• Racial tension boiled over in the inner city riots which spread across the nation last week.• The violent communal riots of 1969 precipitated his resignation as Prime Minister in 1970.• Four days of unrest and anti-government riots left at least three people dead.• Police, many in riot gear, later separated the gangs.• Five days of rioting followed the police shooting of student leaders.• In 1943 there were violent race riots in Detroit in which 25 black people died.• the student riots in Paris in the 1960s• Altogether the riots cost 130 lives and well over $700 million in property damage.• The army was called in to put down the riots.• More than 150 officers battled to end the riots outside the embassy.• By the time the riot was brought under control, the white bus was already back in Dresden.• At least 300 people were killed during the weeklong riots.• There were riots in several cities after it was announced that the price of bread would rise by 200%.riot shields• Metal riot shields were introduced in 1970.• There were no plastic riot shields, no riot sticks or helmets, no water cannon and no mobile command posts available.• Pickets charged straight into the police riot shields.• It reached a peak as miners surged in against the riot shields.• Other demonstrators have managed to draw pink hearts on most of the riot shields.• Some of the pickets had wrenched riot shields away from the police.riotriot2 verb [intransitive] VIOLENTif a crowd of people riot, they behave in a violent and uncontrolled way, for example by fighting the police and damaging cars or buildings University students rioted in protest at tuition fees. —rioting noun [uncountable] —rioter noun [countable]→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
riot• In the end, I think, they did not know how to riot.• In July 1834, rioting against abolitionists in New York City resulted in mass destruction of the black section.• Investors have been a tad nervous since indigenous people rioted for several days in March.• Gangs of youths rioted for two nights on the streets of the capital.• Prisoners in several jails have rioted in protest at their appalling conditions.• Hundreds of prisoners rioted on April 1 in the overcrowded prison.• The congress called on the government to reopen schools and Niamey University, closed following rioting on Feb. 27.• At the time of the shooting the students were not rioting or causing civil disruption.• Some, as you know, seek revenge - they riot, they take drugs and generally make damned nuisances of themselves.• When the pyramids began to collapse, crowds rioted throughout the small country and opposition activists demanded that the government step down.Origin riot1 (1100-1200) Old French “quarrel” 