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furl

/fərl/
IPA guide

Other forms: furled; furling; furls

To furl is to roll something up, the way you furl your sleeping bag before sliding it into your backpack on a camping trip.

Furl comes from roots meaning "to hold firmly" and "to bind." It's frequently used when sailors take down sails and roll them securely: "Furl the main sail! There's a storm brewing!" You can also use it for a leaf or flower that's curled up, as opposed to unfurled: "Those blossoms furl at night and open in the daytime." Or, if you want to show off your vocabulary, you might say: "Let me just furl these burritos and then we can eat."

Definitions of furl
  1. verb
    form into a cylinder by rolling
    synonyms: roll up
    roll, roll up
    show certain properties when being rolled
    see moresee less
    types:
    douse
    lower quickly
    reef
    roll up (a portion of a sail) in order to reduce its area
    bolt
    make or roll into bolts
    gather in, take in
    fold up
    brail
    take in a sail with a brail
    incorporate
    unite or merge with something already in existence
    coal
    take in coal
    type of:
    change form, change shape, deform
    assume a different shape or form
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