to roll a reefer

9.9

Make a small cigarette from marijuana by wrapping it in thin paper

phrasal verb
/roʊl ə ˈriːfər/

NSFW

: armar un porro

He showed his friends how to roll a reefer with just one hand.

Examples

They decided to roll a reefer before the movie started.
Can you help me roll a reefer?
It's illegal to roll a reefer in many states.
He rolls a reefer every Friday.
He showed his friends how to roll a reefer with just one hand.
They decided to roll a reefer before the movie started.
Can you help me roll a reefer?

Surface Forms

roll a reefer infinitive

rolled a reefer past

rolled a reefer past participle

rolling a reefer present participle

rolls a reefer third person singular

Morphology

roll + a + reefer

The verb 'roll' (to form into a roll) combined with the noun 'reefer' (a rolled marijuana cigarette) yields the meaning 'to make a reefer' directly and predictably. Although 'reefer' is slang, the expression is fully compositional (verb + object) and follows standard English patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would understand it.

Etymology

Roll a reefer shows a simple, literal picture: you use your hands to roll marijuana into a small cigarette called a reefer. One popular story says 'reefer' has long been a word for a marijuana cigarette, so the phrase means 'to make a marijuana cigarette'.