Jennifer from Traverse City, Michigan, asks about using reef to mean applying a lot of force or torque, as in reefing on a stuck window or stubborn jar. This regional verb likely comes from the sailing use of reef, to reduce a sail by taking in part...
reef v.— «So I reefed on it, and he reefed back. There was a lot of reefing. He was surprisingly strong, and was pulling against my banged-up left hand with all his fury, and I was mortified to discover I was spending a Friday night wrestling with...
reef v.— «The suspension seems very stiff to me…and the adjuster turns with no resistance, about 4 or 5 turns, then seems to bottom out and not turn any firther (I haven’t tried really reefing on it yet…I don’t want to wreck anything on this...
reef v.— «Babe Zaharias is a dark brown filly with a pauper’s life-time earnings. She stood in box No.76 reefing at the leads that held her head up and away from the straw.» —“Bold Ha Ha fails champion test” by Patrick Smith Australian Oct. 18...
reef v.— «I failed to understand it a bit later, when I hooked the bottom of the lake. To me, reefing and reefing and reefing on my Very Expensive graphite rod was fairly serious business. To her, it was a good belly laugh. Especially when I reefed...
reef v.— «Son of Briartic started cranking his head sideways during the stretch run. “All those people were there.…But I was reefing on him. He responded well.”» —“It was all hollering and hoots for Souter” by Beverley Smith Globe and...
