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12 dictionary results for: Reef
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
reef1 
[reef] Pronunciation Key
[reef] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a ridge of rocks or sand, often of coral debris, at or near the surface of the water. |
| 2. | Mining. a lode or vein. |
[Origin: 1575–85; earlier riff(e) < D rif]
]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
reef2
[reef] Pronunciation Key Nautical
[reef] Pronunciation Key Nautical –noun
–verb (used with object)
| 1. | a part of a sail that is rolled and tied down to reduce the area exposed to the wind. |
| 2. | to shorten (sail) by tying in one or more reefs. |
| 3. | to reduce the length of (a topmast, a bowsprit, etc.), as by lowering, sliding inboard, or the like. |
| 4. | to pull (old oakum) out of seams, as with a rave hook (often fol. by out). |
[Origin: 1350–1400; ME refe (n.) < D reef]
]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| reef 1
(rēf) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Obsolete Dutch rif, possibly from Old Norse, ridge.] reef'y adj. |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| reef 2
(rēf) Pronunciation Key
n. A portion of a sail rolled and tied down to lessen the area exposed to the wind. tr.v. reefed, reef·ing, reefs
[Middle English riff, from Old Norse rif, ridge, reef.] |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
reef (2)
reef (2)
"horizontal section of sail," 1390, from O.N. rif "reef of a sail," probably a transferred use of rif "ridge, rib" (see tib). Cf. Ger. reff, Swed. ref, Norw. riv, Dan. reb, all from the O.N. word. Reefer as a nickname for "midshipman" (1818) is source of the meaning "coat of a nautical cut" (1878).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| reef | |
noun | |
| 1. | a submerged ridge of rock or coral near the surface of the water |
| 2. | a rocky region in the southern Transvaal in northeastern South Africa; contains rich gold deposits and coal and manganese [syn: Witwatersrand] |
| 3. | one of several strips across a sail that can be taken in or rolled up to lessen the area of the sail that is exposed to the wind |
verb | |
| 1. | lower and bring partially inboard; "reef the sailboat's mast" |
| 2. | roll up (a portion of a sail) in order to reduce its area |
| 3. | reduce (a sail) by taking in a reef |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| reef
(rēf) Pronunciation Key
A strip or ridge of rocks, sand, or coral that rises to or near the surface of a body of water. See more at coral reef.
|
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
U.S. Gazetteer - Cite This Source - Share This
Ocean Reef, FL Zip code(s): 33037
U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Reef
Reef\ (r?f), n. [Akin to D. rif, G. riff, Icel. rif, Dan. rev; cf. Icel. rifa rift, rent, fissure, rifa to rive, bear. Cf. Rift, Rive.]1. A chain or range of rocks lying at or near the surface of the water. See Coral reefs, under Coral. 2. (Mining.) A large vein of auriferous quartz; -- so called in Australia. Hence, any body of rock yielding valuable ore. Reef builder (Zo["o]l.), any stony coral which contributes material to the formation of coral reefs. Reef heron (Zo["o]l.), any heron of the genus Demigretta; as, the blue reef heron (D. jugularis) of Australia.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Reef
Reef\, n. [Akin to D. reef, G. reff, Sw. ref; cf. Icel. rif reef, rifa to basten together. Cf. Reeve, v. t., River.] (Naut.) That part of a sail which is taken in or let out by means of the reef points, in order to adapt the size of the sail to the force of the wind. Note: From the head to the first reef-band, in square sails, is termed the first reef; from this to the next is the second reef; and so on. In fore-and-aft sails, which reef on the foot, the first reef is the lowest part. --Totten. Close reef, the last reef that can be put in. Reef band. See Reef-band in the Vocabulary. Reef knot, the knot which is used in tying reef pointss. See Illust. under Knot. Reef line, a small rope formerly used to reef the courses by being passed spirally round the yard and through the holes of the reef. --Totten. Reef points, pieces of small rope passing through the eyelet holes of a reef-band, and used reefing the sail. Reef tackle, a tackle by which the reef cringles, or rings, of a sail are hauled up to the yard for reefing. --Totten. To take a reef in, to reduce the size of (a sail) by folding or rolling up a reef, and lashing it to the spar.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Reef
Reef\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Reefed (r[=e]ft); p. pr. & vb. n. Reefing.] (Naut.) To reduce the extent of (as a sail) by roiling or folding a certain portion of it and making it fast to the yard or spar. --Totten. To reef the paddles, to move the floats of a paddle wheel toward its center so that they will not dip so deeply.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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