droughte

== Middle English == === Alternative forms === droghte, droȝte, drought, drougthe, drouȝte, drouȝþe, drouht, drouthe, drouþe, drowghte, drowþe drugte, druhhþe (Early Middle English); drouȝth, droute, drowte, drowyth (Late Middle English) droȝt, droȝþe (Cheshire, Staffordshire); druȝþe (Kent); drouhþe (Worcestershire); drught (Yorkshire) === Etymology === From the oblique forms of Old English drūgaþ (and the variant drūgaþe), from dryġe (“dry”); equivalent to drye +‎ -the (abstract nominal suffix). Compare Middle Dutch drôochte, Middle Low German drö̂gede. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈdruxt(ə)/, /ˈdruːxt(ə)/, /ˈdruxθ(ə)/, /ˈdruːð(ə)/, /ˈdruːθ(ə)/ IPA(key): /ˈdrɔxt(ə)/, /ˈdrɔu̯xt(ə)/, /-θ(ə)/ (with lowering) === Noun === droughte (uncountable) Drought; an absence of rain. Aridity; an absence of water. Inherent "dryness" (according to the medieval worldview). (rare) Thirstiness; a bodily need of water. ==== Descendants ==== English: drought (dialectal or obsolete drouth, druft) Scots: drocht, drouth ==== References ==== “drǒught(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.