ravel
pronunciation
How to pronounce ravel in British English:
UK [ˈrævl]
How to pronounce ravel in American English:
US [ˈrævəl]
-
- Noun:
- a row of unravelled stitches
-
- Verb:
- disentangle
- tangle or complicate
Word Origin
- ravel (v.)
- 1580s, "to untangle, disentangle, unwind" (originally with out), also "to entangle, become tangled or confused," from Dutch ravelen "to tangle, fray," rafelen "to unweave," from rafel "frayed thread." The seemingly contradictory senses of this word (ravel and unravel are both synonyms and antonyms) are reconciled by its roots in weaving and sewing: as threads become unwoven, they get tangled.
- ravel (n.)
- 1630s, "a tangle;" 1832, "a broken thread," from ravel (v.).
Example
- 1. Musical impressionism and exoticism : debussy ravel and monet .
- 2. The drunkard began to ravel again .
- 3. The difficulty will soon ravel out .
- 4. Ravel & steffen peters , gp kur , us olympic trials 2008 .
- 5. Anda - geza anda plays haydn , schumann , ravel .