Reef, rēf, n. a portion of a sail rolled or folded up.—v.t. to reduce the exposed surface of, as a sail: to gather up any material in a similar way.—ns. Reef′-band, a strong strip of canvas extending across a sail to strengthen it; Reef′er, a reef-oyster: one who reefs: a short jacket worn by sailors: a midshipman; Reef′-goose, the common wild goose of North America; Reef′ing, the gathering up of a curtain in short festoons; Reef′ing-jack′et, a pea-jacket; Reef′-knot, a square knot; Reef′-line, a temporary means of spilling a sail; Reef′-pend′ant, in fore and aft sails, a rope through a sheave-hole in the boom; Reef′-squid, a lashing used aboard the luggers on the south coast of England; Reef′-tack′le, a tackle used to facilitate reefing.—adjs. Reef′y, full of reefs; Close′-reefed, the condition of a sail when all its reefs have been taken in. [Dut. reef, reef; Ice. rif, Dan. reb.]
Reef, rēf, adj. (Scot.) scabby.—n. the itch. [A.S. hreóf, scabby.]
Reek, rēk, n. smoke: vapour.—v.i. to emit smoke or vapour: to steam.—adj. Reek′y, full of reek: smoky: soiled with steam or smoke: foul. [A.S. réc; Ice. reykr, Ger. rauch, Dut. rook, smoke.]
Reel, rēl, n. a lively Scottish dance for two couples or more, its music generally written in common time of four crotchets in a measure, but sometimes in jig time of six quavers: music for such a dance.—v.i. to dance a reel. [Gael. righil.]
Reel, rēl, n. a rolling or turning frame for winding yarn, &c.—v.t. to wind on a reel.—adj. Reel′able, capable of being reeled.—ns. Reel′-click, an attachment to an angler's reel, which checks the line from running out too freely; Reel′-cott′on, sewing cotton thread wound on reels or spools; Reel′er, one who reels: the grasshopper-warbler; Reel′-hold′er, a rotatory frame to hold spools or reels of thread used in sewing: one of the watch in a man-of-war who hauls in the line when the log is heaved to ascertain the ship's speed; Reel′ing-machine′, a machine for winding thread on spools or reels: a machine which winds into hanks the cotton yarn received from the bobbins of the spinning-frames; Reel′-line, a fishing-line used on a reel by anglers, esp. the part reeled, as distinguished from that cast; Reel′-plate, the metal plate of a fishing-reel that fits into the reel-seat; Reel′-seat, the groove on an angler's rod which receives the reel.—Reel off, to give out with rapidity or fluency. [A.S. reól, hreól.]
Reel, rēl, v.i. to stagger: to vacillate.—n. giddiness.—adv. Reel′-rall (Scot.), topsy-turvy. [Conn. with preceding word.]
Re-elect, rē-ē-lekt′, v.t. to elect again.—n. Re-elec′tion.
Re-elevate, rē-el′e-vāt, v.t. to elevate again or anew.
Re-eligible, rē-el′i-ji-bl, adj. capable of re-election.—n. Re-eligibil′ity.
Reem, rēm, n. an animal mentioned in Job, xxxix. 9—unicorn, wild ox, or ox-antelope.