Word.ws English Dictionary

take a reef in

take a reef in verb: to reduce the surface area of a sail by folding or rolling part of it, typically to handle stronger winds and maintain stability.

Verb

take a reef in (third-person singular simple present takes a reef in, present participle taking a reef in, simple past took a reef in, past participle taken a reef in)

  1. To reduce the surface area of a sail by folding or rolling part of it, typically to handle stronger winds and maintain stability.

Forms of take a reef in

third-person singular presenttakes a reef in
present participletaking a reef in
pasttook a reef in
past participletaken a reef in

Questions about take a reef in

What does take a reef in mean?
Take a reef in means to reduce the surface area of a sail by folding or rolling part of it, typically to handle stronger winds and maintain stability.
What part of speech is take a reef in?
Take a reef in is a verb.
What is the past tense of take a reef in?
The past tense of take a reef in is took a reef in.

Words near take a reef in in the dictionary

  1. take a pitch
  2. take a powder
  3. take a pull
  4. take a rain check
  5. take a raincheck
  6. take a reef in
  7. take a ride to Tyburn
  8. take a risk
  9. take a run at
  10. take a running jump
  11. take a seat

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: take a reef in (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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