reef
noun
- feature lying beneath the surface of the water
verb
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L332733 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ɹiːf/
adj
Etymology: From Middle English ref, hreof, from Old English hrēof (“rough, scabby, leprous", also "a leper”), from Proto-Germanic *hreubaz (“rough, scabby, scrubby”), from Proto-Indo-European *kreup- (“scab, crust”), related to Old English hrēofla (“leprosy, leper”). Cognate with Scots reif (“a skin disease leaving crusts on the skin, the scab”), Old High German riob (“leprous, scabby, mangy”), Icelandic hrjúfur (“scabby, rough”). Compare riffe, dandruff.
- Scabby; scurvy.
name
Etymology: Borrowed from North German Reef, possibly related to Reep (“rope”), or otherwise from obsolete rif (“body”) (from Proto-West Germanic *hrif).
- A surname from German.
noun
Etymology: From Middle English ref, hreof, from Old English hrēof (“rough, scabby, leprous", also "a leper”), from Proto-Germanic *hreubaz (“rough, scabby, scrubby”), from Proto-Indo-European *kreup- (“scab, crust”), related to Old English hrēofla (“leprosy, leper”). Cognate with Scots reif (“a skin disease leaving crusts on the skin, the scab”), Old High German riob (“leprous, scabby, mangy”), Icelandic hrjúfur (“scabby, rough”). Compare riffe, dandruff.
- The itch; any eruptive skin disorder.
- Dandruff.
verb
Etymology: From Middle English reef, from Old Norse rif, Middle Dutch rif, rēve, and/or Middle Low German ref. Possibly a figurative use of the word for “rib” in etymology 1 above, in which case all forms must, again, be borrowings from Old Norse. Alternatively it may be a different word related to Old English rift (“curtain, veil”), ārāfian (“to uncoil, wind off”).
- To take in part of a sail in order to adapt the size of the sail to the force of the wind.
“"When the day arrived that the boy was to be skipper, the weather was calm and fine, but he called all men to reef sails, so the ship had scarcely any sail on her."”
“1970 July–December, Margaret Quilty, Roller Reefing Made Easy, Boating, page 63, Be sure the blocks are securely mounted—they carry a fairish load when the sail is reefed. If both reefing line and main halyard are led to the cockpit, even singlehanded reefing is a breeze.”
- To pull or yank strongly, especially in relation to horse riding.
“And when the Cup came on he stirred them up ′round the barrier and he flew out of the barrier and he pulled and reefed and pulled and reefed and Lewis didn′t let him settle down until about three furlongs from home and when he did settle the horse was all out of stride and he went back through the field a fair bit.”
“Alf told me that one young white stockman, eager to impress the girls, went outside and mounted his horse, then began showing off his prowess, racing past the pub, wheeling and reefing his horse up and down the street, yackeyeing and whooping, flogging his horse with a battered old hat and always turning towards the pub to see if the girls were watching these feats of horsemanship.”
- To move the floats of a paddle wheel toward its center so that they will not dip so deeply.
“Reef the paddles.”
- To manipulate the lining of a person's pocket in order to steal the contents unnoticed.
“This was done by "reefing." He put two fingers just inside the opening and lifted the lining a trifle. Although I watched his hands, I could feel nothing, so gently did his fingers work. Reefing a couple of times, he lifted my handkerchief, as he might have taken out anything else.”