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reeve

Historical Office
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A medieval English official who managed a manor or town on behalf of a lord

Detailed Definition
The reeve appears in poetry as a figure of local administration and peasant authority. Historically overseeing accounts and labor, reeves occupied a complex social position between lord and serf. In verse—especially Chaucer’s “The Reeve’s Tale”—they symbolize shrewdness, resentment, or the burdens of middle management. Poets use reeves to explore themes of justice, class tension, and the moral ambiguities of delegated power.
Example
Example in poetry:
Chaucer’s “The Reeve’s Tale” presents the reeve as a shrewd estate manager, wary and precise; In pastoral poetry, the reeve oversees harvests and settles village disputes with rustic wisdom; The reeve’s ledger becomes a symbol of order in chaotic feudal life; Poets contrast the reeve’s pragmatism with the lord’s extravagance; In allegory, the reeve represents earthly stewardship and accountability; Modern poets evoke the reeve to critique bureaucracy or celebrate local governance.
Additional Notes
Reeves were key administrators in Anglo-Saxon and medieval England, overseeing manorial accounts, harvests, and labor on behalf of lords; Chaucer’s Reeve is shrewd and feared—poetic reeves often represent practical intelligence, rural authority, or the friction between peasant and lord; their role reveals the bureaucratic backbone of feudal agriculture and local governance.
Also Known As
bailiff steward manorial reeve
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