ream (rm)

a traditional unit of quantity used for counting sheets of paper. The word is thought to be derived from the Arabic rizmah, meaning a bundle. A ream is equal to 20 quires, which would be 480 sheets with the traditional definition of a quire as 24 sheets. In recent years, however, the ream has been redefined to equal 500 sheets. (Working backwards, this changes the definition of a quire from 24 to 25 sheets.) The new definition reflects the current practice of marketing many kinds of paper in packages of 500 sheets. The older size of 480 sheets is now called a short ream.

Not sure when the 480 -> 500 switch occurred.

perhaps something to do when computers came around? I know a gigabyte refers to 1000 MB when in reality it’s 1024…

perhaps paper has become so expensive that in order to keep giving consumers a “ream” of paper for the same price, they did the math and reduce it by twelve sheets.. to save billions of dollars? hehe?

I give up!