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ret

[ ret ]
/ rɛt /
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verb (used with object), ret·ted, ret·ting.
to soak in water or expose to moisture, as flax or hemp, to facilitate the removal of the fiber from the woody tissue by partial rotting.
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Origin of ret

1400–50; late Middle English reten, retten; cognate with Dutch reten (compare Dutch roten,German rössen,Swedish röta); akin to rot

OTHER WORDS FROM ret

un·ret·ted, adjective

Other definitions for ret (2 of 2)

ret.

abbreviation
retain.
retired.
return.
returned.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ret in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ret

ret
/ (rɛt) /

verb rets, retting or retted
(tr) to moisten or soak (flax, hemp, jute, etc) to promote bacterial action in order to facilitate separation of the fibres from the woody tissue by beating

Word Origin for ret

C15: of Germanic origin; related to Middle Dutch reeten, Swedish röta, German rösten; see rot 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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