reps

Meanings

1. 1nounpluralinformalsport

   Short for repetitions: the number of times you lift a weight or do one exercise movement in a set.

   Grammar: Used as a plural in gym talk; the singular is 'rep', as in 'one more rep'.

   Patterns

   • do ten reps
   • a set of reps
   • high reps

   My trainer told me to do three sets of twelve reps.

   She keeps the weight light and does high reps instead.

   After twenty reps my arms were shaking.

2. 2nounpluralinformalbusiness

   Short for representatives: people who act or speak officially for a group, company, or area.

   Grammar: Plural of 'rep'; the singular 'rep' means one such person.

   Patterns

   • sales reps
   • union reps
   • company reps

   Several sales reps came to the trade fair.

   The union reps met management to discuss pay.

   Our reps in Asia handle all the local orders.

Word forms

Common combinations

do reps

He does reps slowly to build control.

a set of reps

Finish each set of reps before resting.

sales reps

The sales reps travel to clients every week.

high reps

High reps with light weights suit beginners.

union reps

Union reps negotiate with the employer.

Synonyms and how they differ

repetitions

The full word; use it in writing or formal instructions, while 'reps' sounds casual and spoken.

representatives

The full word for the people sense; 'reps' is a short, informal version used in offices and news headlines.

Word family

rep noun

One repetition of an exercise, or one representative.

repetition noun

The act of doing something again, or one repeated movement.

Commonly confused: reps or reps?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “reps”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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