ream

/rim/

/rim/

Other forms: reams; reamed; reaming

A ream is a quantity of paper sold in a bundle, once comprised of 480 sheets but now rounded up to 500. If you write reams of love letters to your beloved, I hope she appreciates them. Or at least recycles.

The word ream has two distinct meanings, depending on whether you use it as a noun or a verb. As a noun, it refers to an amount of paper, its origin from the Arabic rizmah, or "bundle." As a verb, ream is a rough word that can mean "to make a hole in" or "to squeeze." When you "ream someone out" you give them a scolding.

Definitions of ream

1. noun

   a quantity of paper; 480 or 500 sheets; one ream equals 20 quires
   type of:

   definite quantity

   a specific measure of amount
2. noun

   a large quantity of written matter
   “he wrote reams and reams”

   type of:

   large indefinite amount, large indefinite quantity

   an indefinite quantity that is above the average in size or magnitude
3. verb

   enlarge with a reamer
   “ream a hole”

   type of:

   enlarge

   make larger
4. verb

   remove by making a hole or by boring
   “the dentist reamed out the debris in the course of the root canal treatment”

   type of:

   remove, take, take away, withdraw

   remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract
5. verb

   squeeze the juice out (of a fruit) with a reamer
   “ream oranges”

   type of:

   express, extract, press out

   obtain from a substance, as by mechanical action