reel off

verb

reeled off; reeling off; reels off

transitive verb

1

: to tell or recite readily and usually at length

reel off a few jokes to break the ice

2

: to chalk up usually as a series

Synonyms of reel off

• recite
• memorize

Examples of reel off in a Sentence

he's able to reel off the names of all the U.S. presidents, in historical order and without pausing

her friend proceeded to reel off the roster of losers that she had dated over the years

Recent Examples on the Web

Bajaria is quick to reel off statistics that give a sense of Netflix’s scope. — Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026

But the Bobcats were unfazed, as running back Tre Green reeled off a 48-yard run, down to the Keller 22-yard line. — Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Oct. 2026

The Penguins looked horrible early, then dazzled the home fans by reeling off five consecutive goals. — Josh Yohe, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026

That’s when Odebunmi reeled off his best run of the night, a 58-yarder down the right sideline, to tie the score 6-6. — Joel Beers, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for reel off

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• playoff

Kids Definition

reel off

verb

: to tell or recite rapidly and easily

reeled off the right answers