Online Etymology Dictionary

reet (adj.): "good, proper, excellent," 1934, jazz slang, from American English dialectal pronunciation of right (adj.).
reeve (n.): "steward," Old English gerefa, of unknown origin and with no known cognates. Not connected to German Graf (see margrave). An Anglo-Saxon official of high rank, having local jurisdiction under a king. Cf. sheriff.
ref: 1899 (n.), 1929 (v.); short for referee. Related: Reffed; reffing.
refectory (n.): late 15c., from Medieval Latin refectorium, from reficere "to remake, restore," from re- (see re-) + facere (see factitious).
refer (v.): late 14c., "to trace back, attribute, assign," from Old French referer (14c.), from Latin referre "to relate, refer," literally "to carry back," from re- "back" (see re-) + ferre "carry" (see infer). Meaning "to commit to some authority for a decision" is from mid-15c.; sense of "to direct (someone) to a book, etc." is from c.1600.
referee (n.): 1620s, "person who examines patent applications" (see refer). Sporting use is first recorded 1840 (specifically of baseball from 1856).
referee (v.): 1889, from referee (n.). Related: Refereed; refereeing.
reference (n.): 1580s, "act of referring," from refer + -ance. Meaning "direction to a book or passage" is recorded from 1610s. Meaning "testimonial" is from 1895. Reference book dates from 1808. Phrase in reference to is attested from 1590s.
reference (v.): 1837 (implied in referenced), from reference (n.). Related: Referencing.
referendum (n.): 1847, "submitting a question to the voters as a whole" (originally chiefly in reference to Switzerland), from French or German, from Latin referendum "that which must be referred," literally "thing brought back," from neuter gerundive of referre "to bring or take back" (see refer). As a gerundive, it has no plural in Latin; referendums is preferred in English.
referent (adj.): 1838, from Latin referentem, present participle of referre (see refer).
referential (adj.): 1650s, from reference on model of inferential, etc.
referral (n.): 1920, "act of referring," from refer + -al (2). Especially to an expert or specialist (a sense attested from 1955).
refill (v.): 1680s, from re- "back, again" + fill (v.). Related: Refilled; refilling.
refill (n.): 1884, from refill (v.). Meaning "a second drink" is from 1929.
refinance (v.): 1901, from re- "again" + finance (v.). Related: Refinanced; refinancing.
refine (v.): 1580s, of metals, c.1590 of manners, from re-, intensive prefix, + obsolete fine (v.) "make fine," from fine (adj.) "delicate." Cf. French raffiner, Italian raffinare, Spanish refinar. General and figurative sense is recorded from 1590s; of sugar, from 1610s. Related: Refined; refining.
refinement (n.): 1610s, "act or process of refining," from refine + -ment. Meaning "fineness of feeling" is from 1708.
refinery (n.): 1727, from refine + -ery.
refit (v.): 1660s, from re- "again" + fit (v.). Originally nautical. Related: Refitted; refitting.
reflect (v.): early 15c., "to divert, to turn aside, deflect," from Old French reflecter (14c.), from Latin reflectere (see reflection). Of mirrors or polished surfaces, to shine back light rays or images, 1520s; meaning "to turn one's thoughts back on" is c.1600. Related: Reflected; reflecting.
reflection (n.): late 14c., in reference to surfaces, from Late Latin reflexionem (nominative reflexio) "a reflection," literally "a bending back," noun of action from past participle stem of Latin reflectere, from re- "back" (see re-) + flectere "to bend" (see flexible). Meaning "remark made after turning back one's thought on some subject" is from 1650s.
reflective (adj.): 1620s, from reflect + -ive.
reflector (n.): 1660s, agent noun in Latin form from reflect.
reflex (n.): c.1500, "reflection of light," from the verb meaning "refract, deflect" (late 14c.), from Late Latin reflexus "a bending back," properly past participle of reflectere (see reflection). Meaning "involuntary nerve stimulation" first recorded 1877, from reflex action (1833).
reflexive (adj.): 1580s, "reflective, capable of bending or turning back," from Medieval Latin reflexivus, from Late Latin reflexus (see reflect). Meaning "of the nature of a reflex" is from 1871. Related: Reflexively; reflexivity.
reflexology (n.): 1927, as a psychological theory, from German reflexologie (1912); see reflex + -ology. As a foot massage technique, first recorded 1976.
reflux (n.): early 15c., "a flowing back (of the sea, etc.)," from Medieval Latin refluxus, from Latin re- "back, again" (see re-) + fluxus "a flowing" (see flux). Digestive sense is recorded from 1937.
refocus (v.): 1858, from re- + focus. Related: Refocused; refocusing.
reforest (v.): "to restore to a wooded condition," 1831, from re- "back, again" + verb use of forest (n.). Related: Reforested; reforesting.
reform (v.): c.1300, "to convert into another and better form," from Old French reformer (12c.), from Latin reformare "to form again, change, alter," from re- "again" (see re-) + formare "to form" (see form (n.)).

Meaning "to bring (a person) away from an evil course of life" is recorded from early 15c.; of governments, institutions, etc., from early 15c. Related: Reformed; reforming. Reformed churches (1580s) usually are Calvinist as opposed to Lutheran. Reformed Judaism (1843) is a movement initiated in Germany by Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786). Reform school is attested from 1859.
reform (n.): 1660s, from reform (v.).
reformation (n.): "improvement, alteration for the better," early 15c., from Latin reformationem, noun of action from reformare (see reform (v.)). In reference to the European religious movement, it is attested by 1540s, borrowed from Luther. The movement began as a bid to reform doctrines and practices of the Church of Rome.
reformatory (adj.): 1704, from past participle stem of Latin reformare (see reform). As a noun, “house of correction for juveniles,” from 1758.
reformist (n.): 1580s, originally religious; from reform + -ist. Political sense is from 1640s.
refract (v.) $Look up refract at Dictionary.com$: 1610s, from Latin refractus, past participle of refringere (see refraction). Related: Refracted; refracting.
refraction (n.) $Look up refraction at Dictionary.com$: 1570s, from Late Latin refractionem (nominative refractio) "a breaking up," noun of action from past participle stem of Latin refringere "to break up," from re- "back" (see re-) + comb. form of frangere "to break" (see fraction). Refrangible first recorded 1670s.
refractive (adj.) $Look up refractive at Dictionary.com$: 1670s, from Late Latin refractivus, or from refract + -ive.
refractory (adj.) $Look up refractory at Dictionary.com$: "stubborn, obstinate, perverse," 1610s (earlier refractorious, 1550s), from Latin refractarius "obstinate."
refrain (v.): c.1300, from Old French refraigner "restrain, repress" (12c.), from Latin refrenare "bridle, hold in with a bit," from re- "back" (see re-) + frenare "restrain, furnish with a bridle," from frenum "a bridle." Related: Refrained; refraining.
refrain (n.): late 14c., from Old French refrain, alteration of refrait, properly past participle of refraindre "repeat," also "break off," from Provençal refranhar "singing of birds, refrain," from Vulgar Latin *refrangere "break off," alteration of Latin refringere (see refraction). The notion is of something that causes a song to "break off" then resume. Not common before 19c.
reframe (v.): 1580s, from re- + frame (v.). Related: Reframed; reframing.
refresh (v.): late 14c., from Old French refrescher (12c.; Modern French rafraîchir), from re- "again" (see re-) + fresche "fresh" (Modern French frais), from a Germanic source (cf. Old High German frisc "fresh," see fresh (adj.)). Related: Refreshed; refreshing. Mental or spiritual sense of refreshing is attested from 1690s.
refreshment (n.): late 14c., "act or fact of refreshing," from Old French refreschement, from refrescher (see refresh). Refreshments, of food and drink only, from 1660s.
refried beans (n.): 1957, translating Spanish frijoles refritos.
refrigerant: 1590s (adj.); 1670s (n.); originally in medicine; see refrigerate + -ant.
refrigerate (v.): 1530s, from Latin refrigeratus, past participle of refrigerare (see refrigeration). Related: Refrigerated; refrigerating. Earlier words in the same sense of "to make cold, to cool" were infrigiden, infrigidate (both early 15c.).
refrigeration (n.): late 15c., "act of cooling or freezing," from Latin refrigerationem "mitigation of heat," especially in sickness, noun of action from refrigerare, from re- "again" (see re-) + frigerare "make cool," from frigus (genitive frigoris) "cold" (see frigid). Specifically of "freezing provisions as a means of preserving them" from 1881.
refrigerator (n.): "cabinet for keeping food cool," 1824, originally in the brewery trade, in place of earlier refrigeratory (c.1600). Agent noun from refrigerate. The electric-powered household device was available from c.1918.
reft: 1847, past participle of reave.