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Added 10 October 2026

reeve

/ɹiːv/ noun

In Latin: praepositus Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about reeve at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Any of several local officials, with varying responsibilities.
The president of a township or municipal district council.
The holder of a proposed but unadopted commissioned rank of the Royal Air Force, equivalent to wing commander.

verb

To pass (a rope) through a hole or opening, especially so as to fasten it.

noun

A female of the species Philomachus pugnax, a highly gregarious, medium-sized wading bird of Eurasia; the male is a ruff.

Origin

From Middle English reve, from Old English rēfa, an aphetism of ġerēfa (also grœ̄fa), from Proto-West Germanic *garāfijō (“officer, official”). Compare Danish greve, Swedish greve, Dutch graaf, German Graf. The role, and eventually the word, was mostly replaced by bailiff, of Anglo-Norman origin.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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