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reel off

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reel

1  [reel]
Use reel off in a Sentence
–noun
1. a cylinder, frame, or other device that turns on an axis and is used to wind up or pay out something.
2. a rotatory device attached to a fishing rod at the butt, for winding up or letting out the line.
3. Photography.
a. a spool on which film, esp. motion-picture film, is wound.
b. a roll of motion-picture film.
c. a holder for roll film in a developing tank.
4. a quantity of something wound on a reel.
5. Chiefly British. a spool of sewing thread; a roller or bobbin of sewing thread.
–verb (used with object)
6. to wind on a reel, as thread, yarn, etc.
7. to unwind (silk filaments) from a cocoon.
8. to pull or draw by winding a line on a reel: to reel a fish in.
—Verb phrase
9. reel off, to say, write, or produce quickly and easily: The old sailor reeled off one story after another.
—Idiom
10. off the reel,
a. without pause; continuously.
b. without delay or hesitation; immediately.
Also, right off the reel.
Origin:
bef. 1050; (n.) ME rele, OE hrēol; c. ON hræll weaver's rod; (v.) ME relen, deriv. of rele

Related forms:
reel⋅a⋅ble, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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reel 1   (rēl)   
n.  

  1. A device, such as a cylinder, spool, or frame, that turns on an axis and is used for winding and storing rope, tape, film, or other flexible materials.

  2. A cylindrical device attached to a fishing rod to let out or wind up the line.

  3. The quantity of wire, film, or other material wound on one reel.

  4. A set of curved lawn-mower blades that rotate around a bar parallel to the ground, cutting grass while moving against a stationary straight blade.

tr.v.   reeled, reel·ing, reels

  1. To wind on or let out from a reel.

  2. To recover by winding on a reel: reel in a large fish.

Phrasal Verb(s):
reel offTo recite fluently and usually at length: reeled off a long list of names and dates.

[Middle English, from Old English hrēol.]
reel'a·ble adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

reel  (n.1)
"frame turning on an axis," late O.E. hreol "reel for winding thread," from P.Gmc. *khrekhulaz; probably related to hrægel "garment," and O.N. hræll "spindle." Specifically of the fishing rod attachment from 1726; of a film projector apparatus from 1896. The verb meaning "to wind on a reel" is recorded from 1393, from the noun. To reel off "rattle off without pause or effort" is from 1837. Reel-to-reel type of tape deck is attested from 1961.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

reel off

see rattle off.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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