Etymology

tray

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Today it means: A small, typically rectangular or round, flat, and rigid object upon which things are carried. Full definition →

First used before 16th c.Middle English trey ← Old English trēġ ← Proto-West Germanic *trauwi
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tray · noun, verb1

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*drewo-
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*trawją“wooden vessel”
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*trauwi
  4. Old English · inherited fromtrēġ
  5. Middle English · inherited fromtrey
  6. English todaytray

From Middle English trey, from Old English trēġ, trīġ (“wooden board, tray”), from Proto-West Germanic *trauwi, from Proto-Germanic *trawją (“wooden vessel”), from Proto-Indo-European *drewo-, *dóru (“tree; wood”). Cognate with Old Norse treyja (“carrier”), Old Swedish trø (“wooden grain measure”), Low German Treechel (“dough trough”), Ancient Greek δροίτη (droítē, “tub, vat”), Sanskrit द्रोण (droṇa, “trough”). Related to trough and tree.

tray · noun2

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*dreǵʰ-“unwilling, sullen, slack”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*tregô“mourning”
  3. Old English · inherited fromtrega“misfortune, misery, trouble, grief, pain”
  4. Middle English · inherited fromtraye
  5. English todaytray

From Middle English traye, treie, from Old English trega (“misfortune, misery, trouble, grief, pain”), from Proto-Germanic *tregô (“mourning”), from Proto-Indo-European *dreǵʰ- (“unwilling, sullen, slack”). Cognate with Icelandic tregi (“sorrow, grief”), Gothic 𐍄𐍂𐌹𐌲𐍉 (trigō, “grief”).

tray · verb3

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*dreǵʰ-“unwilling, sullen, slack”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*tregōną“to become tedious, become lazy, sadden”
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*tregōn
  4. Old English · inherited fromtregian“to trouble, harass, vex”
  5. Middle English · inherited fromtrayen
  6. English todaytray

From Middle English trayen, treien, from Old English tregian (“to trouble, harass, vex”), from Proto-West Germanic *tregōn, from Proto-Germanic *tregōną (“to become tedious, become lazy, sadden”), from Proto-Indo-European *dreǵʰ- (“unwilling, sullen, slack”).

tray · verb4

  1. Latin · derived fromtradō“hand over, betray”
  2. Old French · derived fromtrair“to betray”
  3. Middle English · inherited fromtrayen
  4. English todaytray

From Middle English trayen, from Old French trair (“to betray”), from Latin tradō (“hand over, betray”).

tray · noun5

Blend of trans + gay.

Words from the same roots

Middle Englishtrey all →

trey

Latintradō all →

tradent

First known use, by meaning

  • before 16th c. to betray

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.