dreich

== English == === Etymology === The adjective is borrowed from Scots dreich (“hard to bear, dreary, tedious, wearisome; interminable, long-winded; dull, uninteresting; slow, tardy; doleful, gloomy; baffling, difficult; difficult to reach, inaccessible”), from Middle English dregh, dri, drie (“burdensome; depressing, dismal; large, tall; lasting, long; long-suffering, patient; tedious; of blows: hard, heavy; of the face: unchanging, unmoved; of a person: strong, valorous”) [and other forms], from Old English *drēog, drēoh (“earnest; fit; sober”), and then probably partly: shortened from Old English ġedrēog (“calm, quiet; sober; fit, suitable”, adjective), from ġe- (prefix forming adjectives of association or similarity) + Proto-Germanic *dreugaz (“enduring, lasting”) (from *dreuganą (“to serve, be a retainer”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰrewgʰ- (“to serve one’s tribe; loyal”)); and influenced by Old Norse drjúgr (“sufficient; excessive, very; great; strong”), from Proto-Germanic *dreugaz (see above). The noun is probably partly derived: from the adjective; and borrowed from Scots dreich (“dreariness, gloom”) (rare), probably from Middle English dri, drie (“annoyance, trouble; grief; period of time”) [and other forms], possibly from dri, drie (adjective) (see above). (Compare Old English ġedrēog (“seemliness; seriousness, sobriety; something appropriate or required”, noun), which did not survive into Middle English.) === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /dɹiːk/, /dɹiːx/ (General American) IPA(key): /dɹik/ (Scotland) IPA(key): /drix/ (Ireland) IPA(key): /ðreː/, /driːx/ Rhymes: -iːk, -iːx === Adjective === dreich (comparative dreicher, superlative dreichest) (Northern England, North Midlands, Northern Ireland, Scotland) Extending for a long distance or time, especially when tedious or wearisome; long-drawn-out, protracted; also, of speech or writing: unnecessarily verbose; long-winded. (long-winded): Synonyms: see Thesaurus:verbose (long-winded): Antonyms: see Thesaurus:concise Not enjoyable or interesting; boring, dull. Synonyms: see Thesaurus:boring Antonyms: see Thesaurus:exciting Bleak, cheerless, dismal, dreary, miserable. Synonyms: see Thesaurus:cheerless suitably serious or solemn of a person: patient, stoic, tolerant, resolute Slow, sluggish; specifically, of a person: tending to delay or procrastinate (especially when paying for something). Synonyms: dilatory, tardy; see also Thesaurus:slow Antonyms: see Thesaurus:speedy Of a person: having a dejected or serious appearance or mood; dour, gloomy, moody, morose, sullen. Of a task: laborious, tedious, troublesome; hence, needing concentration to understand; intricate. Synonyms: burdensome, taxing, toilsome Chiefly of rain: without pause or stop; continuous, incessant. Synonyms: persistent, sustained, unceasing, unending, unremitting; see also Thesaurus:continuous Of weather: dreary, gloomy (cold, overcast, rainy, etc.). (obsolete) Of a person: negotiating forcefully; driving a hard bargain. Of a place (especially a hill or mountain): difficult to get through or reach; inaccessible. ==== Alternative forms ==== dree, dreigh dreegh (Scotland) ==== Derived terms ==== dree (adverb) dreichly ==== Translations ==== === Noun === dreich (countable and uncountable, plural dreiches) (countable, Northern England, North Midlands) A tedious or troublesome task; also, the most tedious or troublesome part of a task. (uncountable, Scotland) Bleakness, gloom; specifically, gloomy (cold, overcast, rainy, etc.) weather. ==== Translations ==== === References === === Further reading === Joseph Wright, editor (1900), “DREE, adj.”, in The English Dialect Dictionary: […], volume II (D–G), London: Henry Frowde, […], publisher to the English Dialect Society, […]; New York, N.Y.: G[eorge] P[almer] Putnam’s Sons, →OCLC, pages 166–167. === Anagrams === chider, herdic, riched == Irish == === Noun === dreich f sg dative singular of dreach (“front”) === Mutation === === Further reading === Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “dreich”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla [Irish–English Dictionary], Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN == Scots == === Etymology === From Middle English dregh, from Old English ġedrēog, *drēog, from Proto-West Germanic *dreug, from Proto-Germanic *dreugaz. Possibly influenced by Brythonic, e.g. Welsh drycin (“bad weather”) < drwg (“bad”) +‎ hin (“weather”). Distantly cognate with English drudge, dree, and German trügen. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /driːx/, /driːç/ === Adjective === dreich (comparative mair dreich, superlative maist dreich) persistent, continuous, relentless slow, tardy dismal, dowie, dreary, bleak tedious, wearisome, drawn-out reluctant, tight-fisted, driving a hard bargain ==== Derived terms ==== dreichly deid dreich dreich in the draw