ream
1 Americannoun
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a standard quantity of paper, consisting of 20 quires or 500 sheets (formerly 480 sheets), or 516 sheets printer's ream, or perfect ream.
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Usually reams. a large quantity.
He has written reams of poetry.
verb (used with object)
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to enlarge to desired size (a previously bored hole) by means of a reamer.
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to clear with a reamer; remove or press out by reaming.
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to extract the juice from.
to ream an orange.
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Slang.
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to scold or reprimand severely (usually followed byout ).
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to cheat; defraud.
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noun
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a number of sheets of paper, formerly 480 sheets ( short ream ), now 500 sheets ( long ream ) or 516 sheets ( printer's ream or perfect ream ). One ream is equal to 20 quires
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informal (often plural) a large quantity, esp of written matter
he wrote reams
verb
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to enlarge (a hole) by use of a reamer
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to extract (juice) from (a citrus fruit) using a reamer
Etymology
Origin of ream1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English rem(e), from Middle French reime, rame, from Spanish rezma, from Arabic rizmah “bale”
Origin of ream2
First recorded in 1805–15; origin uncertain
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The finished costume of rich red silk lay across her bed, and she was busy draping reams of sunny yellow material across the foot of mine.
From Literature
Those functions also create reams of new data that has to be stored on components like hard drives and flash-based solid-state drives.
Those firms had access to cutting-edge technology, reams of research on just about every investible asset, and a devoted brokerage industry that fought aggressively for their business.
Investigators would conduct interviews on campus, review reams of documents for compliance with various statutes and assess such complex matters as when hateful speech is protected by the First Amendment.
From Salon
In the intervening decades, he wrote and revised reams of material set in the distant past of Middle-earth.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
