Reel Meaning
/ˈɹiːl/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA shaky or unsteady gait.
nounA lively dance originating in Scotland.
Sentence Examples
The jig, reel and hornpipe are the most popular Irish dances.
Tom can reel off the names of the capitals of all European countries.
CEFR Practice Quiz
At the lake, the fisherman wound his fishing line around a small plastic ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She watched the fishing line spin off the ____ as the large fish made a powerful run.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English reel, reele, from Old English rēol, hrēol, from Proto-West Germanic *hrehul, from Proto-Germanic *hrehulaz, *hrahilaz, from Proto-Indo-European *krek- (“to weave, beat”). Cognate with Icelandic ræl, hræll.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Doubtless the present game of chess was developed through just such fiddling; perhaps someone once thought that the drunken reel of the knight was hostile to the essence of Chess."
— 2010, Andrew Koppelman, The Gay Rights Question in Contemporary American Law, page 92:
"So strict is the kirk of Scotland, that one minister was unfrocked for writing a play (in former times); and another was sent about his business for being too fond of whiskey and of dancing the reel of Tullochgorum."
— 1824, Felix M'Donogh, The Hermit in Edinburgh:
"[…]sample the famed waters from the Scottish mountains like a native born, and last but not least, play a reel on the bagpipes in the big hall that set all the laddies and lassies dancing."
— 1913, Forest and Stream, volume 80:
"The traditional reel Within a Mile of Dublin, for instance, distorts until it reaches something quasi-industrial."
— 2023 November 13, Patrick Clarke, “‘People’s idea of Irishness is so warped’: John Francis Flynn, the folk singer fighting for Dublin’s spirit”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
"They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man."
— 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Psalms 107:27:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
At the lake, the fisherman wound his fishing line around a small plastic ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She watched the fishing line spin off the ____ as the large fish made a powerful run.