drail

Meanings

noundrail (plural drails)

fishingA hook with a lead shank.
fishingThe piece of lead around the shank of such a hook.
The iron bow of a plough from which the traces draw.

verbdrail (third-person singular simple present drails, present participle drailing, simple past and past participle drailed)

present singular third person drails · participle present drailing · participle past drailed · past drailed

intransitiveobsoletefishingTo trawl.
drailing for mackerel

Origin

Old Englishtrǣġlian
Old Frenchtrailer
Middle English*drailen
Englishdrail

From Middle English *drailen (attested as drailed), a variant of Middle English trailen (“to hang loosely, drag along, drag away”), from a merger of Old French trailer, traillier (“to trail”) and Old English trǣġlian, trǣġelian (“to pluck, pull away”). The alteration of trailen to drailen was probably due to influence from Middle English dragan, drawen (“to drag, draw”).

More words from Middle English, Old French, Old English

Full word history & related roots →