Etymology Explorer › Middle Low German

Where does “dreien” come from?

dreien (Middle Low German) comes from Old Saxon thrāian, from Proto-West Germanic þrāan, from Proto-Germanic þrēaną, from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- — to rub, turn; to drill, pierce.

Ancestry of “dreien”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Saxonthrāian—
2Proto-West Germanicþrāanto twist
3Proto-Germanicþrēanąto twist, to turn
4Proto-Indo-Europeanterh₁-to rub, turn; to drill, pierce

Words derived from “dreien”

  • dreja
  • dreiemoment
  • dreiebenk
  • dreie
  • dreje
  • dreie
Every word from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- →