reef

Etymology 1

From earlier riff, from Middle English rif, from Old Norse rif (“rib, reef”), from Proto-Germanic *ribją (“rib, reef”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rebʰ- (“arch, ceiling, cover”). Dutch rif (“reef”), Low German riff, reff (“reef”), German Riff (“reef, ledge”) are also borrowed from Old Norse. Doublet of rib.

noun

1. A chain or range of rocks, sand, or coral lying at or near the surface of the water.
2. (Australia, South Africa) A large vein of auriferous quartz; hence, any body of rock yielding valuable ore.

Etymology 2

From Middle English reef, from Old Norse rif, Middle Dutch rif, rēve, and/or Middle Low German ref. Possibly a figurative use of the word for “rib” in etymology 1 above, in which case all forms must, again, be borrowings from Old Norse. Alternatively it may be a different word related to Old English rift (“curtain, veil”), ārāfian (“to uncoil, wind off”).

noun

1. (nautical) A portion of a sail rolled and tied down to lessen the area exposed in a high wind.
   They sailed as if they were stark mad; they never took in a reef in the sail, and when the seas filled the boat, they sailed her up on the back of a wave till she stood nearly on end, the water rushing out over her stern as out of a spout. 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 49
2. A reef knot.

verb

1. (nautical) To take in part of a sail in order to adapt the size of the sail to the force of the wind.
   When the day arrived that the boy was to be skipper, the weather was calm and fine, but he called all men to reef sails, so the ship had scarcely any sail on her. 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 188
   1970 July–December, Margaret Quilty, Roller Reefing Made Easy, Boating, page 63, Be sure the blocks are securely mounted—they carry a fairish load when the sail is reefed. If both reefing line and main halyard are led to the cockpit, even singlehanded reefing is a breeze.
   Mains are made smaller by reefing. This can be done by rolling up the sail around the boom, or by the more traditional method of tying down a panel along the foot. 1995, David Seidman, The Complete Sailor: Learning the Art of Sailing, page 104
   The reefing system for a mainsail must be designed to operate efficiently under adverse conditions and to provide proper sail shape when reefed. 2004, Charlie Wing, How Boat Things Work, page 108
2. (Australia) To pull or yank strongly, especially in relation to horse riding.
   And when the Cup came on he stirred them up ′round the barrier and he flew out of the barrier and he pulled and reefed and pulled and reefed and Lewis didn′t let him settle down until about three furlongs from home and when he did settle the horse was all out of stride and he went back through the field a fair bit. 1986, Jan Wositzky, Me and Phar Lap: The Remarkable Life of Tommy Woodcock, published 2011, page 49
   Alf told me that one young white stockman, eager to impress the girls, went outside and mounted his horse, then began showing off his prowess, racing past the pub, wheeling and reefing his horse up and down the street, yackeyeing and whooping, flogging his horse with a battered old hat and always turning towards the pub to see if the girls were watching these feats of horsemanship. 1994, Herb Wharton, Cattle Camp: Murrie Drovers and Their Stories, published 2010, page 73
   He reefed on the handbrake and sat smoking his cigarette, gazing out through the windscreen at the driveway. 2002, Alex Miller, Journey to the Stone Country, Allen & Unwin, published 2003, page 76
   […]head stockman would say ‘Cut one out but take him at a walk.′ And if you could get that beast out without reefing your horse around, the head stockman – he′d be a pretty cluey old coot - he′s watching that horse′s ears more than what you were doing. 2007, Marion Houldsworth, Maybe It′ll Rain Tomorrow, published 2012, page 104
3. (nautical, of paddles) To move the floats of a paddle wheel toward its center so that they will not dip so deeply.
   Reef the paddles.
4. (slang) To manipulate the lining of a person's pocket in order to steal the contents unnoticed.
   This was done by "reefing." He put two fingers just inside the opening and lifted the lining a trifle. Although I watched his hands, I could feel nothing, so gently did his fingers work. Reefing a couple of times, he lifted my handkerchief, as he might have taken out anything else. Myron M. Stearns, So You Lost Your Pocketbook?, in 1940, The Rotarian (volume 56, number 2, page 39)

Etymology 3

From Middle English ref, hreof, from Old English hrēof (“rough, scabby, leprous", also "a leper”), from Proto-Germanic *hreubaz (“rough, scabby, scrubby”), from Proto-Indo-European *kreup- (“scab, crust”), related to Old English hrēofla (“leprosy, leper”). Cognate with Scots reif (“a skin disease leaving crusts on the skin, the scab”), Old High German riob (“leprous, scabby, mangy”), Icelandic hrjúfur (“scabby, rough”). Compare riffe, dandruff.

adj

1. Scabby; scurvy.

noun

1. (Now chiefly dialectal) The itch; any eruptive skin disorder.
2. (Now chiefly dialectal) Dandruff.