Ream

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ɹiːm/

Definitions

1. To indicate a substantial number of items or paper sheets, to communicate information in an excessively detailed way, and to represent a standard unit in the paper industry usually amounting to 500 sheets
2. A set amount of paper typically consisting of 500 sheets ; to criticize or rebuke someone strongly and at length ; to make a hole or opening wider by cutting or grinding
3. A standardized bundle of many sheets of paper used in printing and writing ; to express sharp disapproval toward someone ; to expand or widen an opening or hole

Etymology: The paper sense of "ream" comes from a word for a bundle, and it has nothing to do with the cream it is often confused with. The paper meaning arrived through Old French "raime" and Catalan "raima," both traced back to the Arabic "rizma," meaning "bundle." The Arabic term travelled along the trade routes that carried paper-making knowledge into Europe, and the Middle English form "rem" followed the same path into English. The other senses have a separate, older history. "Ream" meaning cream is the native English word, from Old English "rēam," tied to Germanic words for cream and to a root meaning "to sour," as in milk going sour. Its link to the verb "to widen a hole" is uncertain. It may be a variant of "rime," a different English word, or it may be connected to "room" and to Germanic verbs meaning "to make room" and "to clear."

Synonyms: bundle, packet, stack, collection, batch