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Ra·vel (rə-vĕl, rä-), (Joseph) Maurice 1875-1937.
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French composer of impressionistic operas, ballets, orchestral works, such as Boléro (1928), and piano works, including Le Tombeau de Couperin (1917).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
rav·el (răvəl)
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v. rav·eled, rav·el·ing, rav·els also rav·elled or rav·el·ling
v.tr.
1. To separate the fibers or threads of (cloth, for example); unravel.
2. To clarify by separating the aspects of.
3. To tangle or complicate.
v.intr.
1. To become separated into its component threads; unravel or fray.
2. To become tangled or confused.
n.
1. A raveling.
2. A broken or discarded thread.
3. A tangle.

[Obsolete Dutch ravelen, from ravel, loose thread.]

ravel·er, ravel·ler n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.