ream
1 Americannoun
-
reams
plural
-
a standard quantity of paper, consisting of 20 quires or 500 sheets (formerly 480 sheets), or 516 sheets printer's ream, or perfect ream.
-
Usually reams. a large quantity.
He has written reams of poetry.
verb (used with object)
-
reams,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reamed,
past participle, past
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reaming
present participle
-
to enlarge to desired size (a previously bored hole) by means of a reamer.
-
to clear with a reamer; remove or press out by reaming.
-
to extract the juice from.
to ream an orange.
-
Slang.
-
to scold or reprimand severely (usually followed byout ).
-
to cheat; defraud.
-
noun
-
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
-
informal (often plural) a large quantity, esp of written matter
he wrote reams
verb
-
to enlarge (a hole) by use of a reamer
-
to extract (juice) from (a citrus fruit) using a reamer
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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reamsimple
-
reamssimple
-
have reamedperfect
-
has reamedperfect
-
am reamingprogressive
-
are reamingprogressive
-
is reamingprogressive
-
have been reamingperfect progressive
-
has been reamingperfect progressive
Past
-
reamedsimple
-
had reamedperfect
-
was reamingprogressive
-
were reamingprogressive
-
had been reamingperfect progressive
Future
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
Explanation
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.
Vocabulary lists containing ream
"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker
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"Two Kinds" by Amy Tan
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Sapiens
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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.
See Examples For:
Clearly, some of the horror over the recipe was not mere Marmite disdain, but its introduction into the ostensible ream of Italian food.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2023
"I shouldn't need to be looking in September at what supermarket chain has the cheapest ream of paper so I can ask parents to buy a ream per child."
From BBC ● May 24, 2023
It involved sometimes a whole ream of paper on an electric typewriter just to get the first sentence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2022
In 1948, Cleary moved into a new house and discovered a ream of typing paper in the linen closet.
From New York Times ● Mar. 26, 2021
I can see Barb’s about to really ream me out, so I decide to make my exit.
From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott
Algorithms digest endless reams of footage to find hidden gems and patterns for agents to monitor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
There are reams of data on what these drugs do, for whom they are most effective and in what dose and form they should be administered.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
The agents also hallucinated reams of incoherent commands and text and were sloppy and did not cover their tracks well.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
To decide what to fund, staffers with deep expertise typically pored over reams of information on abuses under the most repressive regimes and held an open competition to fund groups to work in those countries.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
I fly through the reams of data for each of them, downloading and storing, organizing them into folders.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
And he just reamed him in front of the whole court in front of everyone and fired him, which was very nice of the judge.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2022
Clearly, I’m getting too much satisfaction from reading people who have probably made stuff up get reamed out on Reddit.
From Slate ● Dec. 17, 2021
Another that was reamed by critics and shocked fans when it was nominated for Golden Globes, "Emily in Paris" follows a young American woman who moves to France's capital to chase her dreams.
From Fox News ● Sep. 16, 2021
Drenched in dread, Wyeth’s story is told mainly by an anonymous narrator via 84 flashback scenes reamed with abrupt, enigmatic silences.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 6, 2019
When I got there, my mom and brother were standing by the chairs that bad kids sit in while they’re waiting to get reamed out by the principal.
From "Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick
Even other brands were reaming Instagram for the change.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
The reaming he got from coach John Calipari when the team watched video in the Hall of Famer’s basement the next day.
From Seattle Times ● May 19, 2022
“But he is the exact opposite of that. When Susie is reaming him out he is so happy, it makes him joyful.”
From The Guardian ● Oct. 1, 2017
But notice how Jeanie smiles sadistically while listening to Rooney reaming out Ferris on the back steps.
From Washington Times ● May 22, 2016
She’s probably occupying herself in order to refrain from reaming me out for not sharing my book with Jeremy.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
