English
reefpoint
From reef + point.
Proto-Indo-European *h₁rebʰ- ‘arch, ceiling, cover’
Proto-Germanic *ribją ‘rib, reef’
Old Norse rif ‘rib, reef’
Middle English rif
English reef
Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- ‘to prick, punch’
…
Latin pungō ‘to prick; to puncture’
Latin pūnctum ‘point; puncture’
Old French point ‘dot’
Middle English poynt ‘small hole’
English point
Today it means
noun Any of a series of short ropes attached to a sail that are used to secure it when reefed.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “reefpoint”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / reefpoint