Reff

Meaning

reef (part of a sail that can be rolled in during high wind)

Synonyms

alte Frau

Fregatte

Matrone

Schabracke

Schrapnell

Trage

Tragekorb

🧺

alte Schachtel

Schreckschraube

Scharteke

Spinatwachtel

Rückentrage

Tragegestell

Translations

reef

Pronounced as (IPA)

/rɛf/

Etymology

Borrowed from Low German: Reff

Cognate with Dutch: reef

Cognate with English: reef

Cognate with Danish: rev

Inherited from Middle High German: ref

Inherited from Old High German: href

Cognate with Old Norse: hrip

Cognate with Latin: corbis

Cognate with Lithuanian: krepšỹs

In summary

Borrowed from Low German Reff, from Middle Low German ref. Cognate with Dutch reef, English reef, Danish rev. Further origin uncertain. The West Germanic forms are possibly borrowed from Old Norse rif. If so, the word may identical to that for “rib” (Proto-Germanic *ribją), from which is also German Riff (“reef, bank of rocks”); or it may be a derivation from Old Norse ríva (“to tear”), from Proto-Germanic *rīfaną.