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reft

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reft

[reft]
–verb
a pt. and pp. of reave.

reave

1[reev]
–verb (used with object), reaved or reft, reav⋅ing. Archaic.
to take away by or as by force; plunder; rob.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME reven, OE rēafian; c. G rauben, D roven to rob

reave

2[reev]
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object), reaved or reft, reav⋅ing.
Archaic. to rend; break; tear.

Origin:
1175–1225; ME; appar. special use of reave 1 (by assoc. with rive )
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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reave 1   (rēv)   
v.   reaved or reft (rěft), reav·ing, reaves Archaic

v.   tr.
  1. To seize and carry off forcibly.

  2. To deprive (one) of something; bereave.

v.   intr.
To rob, plunder, or pillage.

[Middle English reven, to plunder, from Old English rēafian; see reup- in Indo-European roots.]
reave 2   (rēv)   
tr.v.   reaved or reft (rěft), reav·ing, reaves Archaic
To break or tear apart.

[Middle English reven, possibly alteration (influenced by reven, to plunder) of Old Norse rīfa, to rive.]
reft 1   (rěft)   
v.  A past tense and a past participle of reave1.
reft 2   (rěft)   
v.  A past tense and a past participle of reave2.
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

reft 
1847, pp. of reave, from O.E. reafian "to rob something from someone," from P.Gmc. *rauthojan (cf. O.Fris. raf, M.Du. roof, Ger. Raub). The ground sense seems to be that of "breaking."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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