Skip to definition.
Get the FREE one-click dictionary software for Windows or the iPhone/iPad and Android apps


Noun: reef  reef
  1. A submerged ridge of rock or coral near the surface of the water
     
  2. 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: reef  reef
  1. Lower and bring partially inboard
    "reef the sailing boat'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
Noun: Reef
  1. A rocky region in the southern Transvaal in northeastern South Africa; contains rich gold deposits and coal and manganese
    - Witwatersrand, Rand

Derived forms: reefs, reefed, reefing

Type of: bring down, furl, get down, let down, lower, part, reduce, region, ridge, roll up, shrink, slip, strip, take down

Part of: canvas, canvass, sail, sheet, Transvaal, Transvaal Province

Encyclopedia: Reef, Charles