Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

reel off

verb

Definition of reel off

transitive verb
1 :to tell or recite readily and usually at length
  • reel off a few jokes to break the ice
2 :to chalk up usually as a series

See reel off defined for kids

Read the Latest from M-W

knupfer-painting-solon-before-croesus
Forms of Government Quiz
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
alt-59e4fc1aaafd6
Trending: New Joe Ide Novel Causes 'Righteous' Spike
alt-59e50f5a357b4
'Spox' May Go On The Record

Examples of reel off in a Sentence

  1. he's able to reel off the names of all the U.S. presidents, in historical order and without pausing

  2. her friend proceeded to reel off the roster of losers that she had dated over the years

First Known Use of reel off

1837

reel off Synonyms

Synonyms
recite, repeat, say
Related Words
con, learn, memorize, study; declaim, mouth, orate, speak
Near Antonyms
read

Learn More about reel off

  1. See words that rhyme with reel off Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for reel off Nglish: Translation of reel off for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up reel off? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

euphony

play

pleasing or sweet sound

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. righteous We provide an assortment of definitions

  2. Kafkaesque 'A nightmarish quality'

  3. mike "microphone"

  4. moron “a very stupid person”

  5. terrorism “The use of violent acts to frighten"

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

reel off

Test Your Vocabulary

Forms of Government Quiz

  • knupfer-painting-solon-before-croesus
  • A gerontocracy is rule by:
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Dictionary Devil

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-59e50f5a357b4
'Spox' May Go On The Record

From newsroom lingo to the mainstream

alt-59e506c5c02ae
C'mon, Of Course 'Myriad' Is a Noun

For a myriad of reasons

alt-59e12097b419d
'Gamut' and 'Gambit' (and 'Gauntlet' Too)

Know when to use (or run) each.

tycoon
17 English Words that Come From Japanese

Some borrowed words don't get returned

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

knupfer-painting-solon-before-croesus
Forms of Government Quiz

Name that government! Or something like that.

Take the quiz
rembrandt-painting-a-young-scholar-and-his-tutor
Original Meanings Quiz

A quiz for the pedantic and those annoyed by them!

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Dictionary Devil
Dictionary Devil

The dictionary has been scrambled—can you put it back together?

Play the game
Examples: reel off in a Sentence