dreve

Meanings

verbdreve (third-person singular simple present dreves, present participle dreving, simple past and past participle dreved)

present singular third person dreves · participle present dreving · participle past dreved · past dreved · alternative drove

obsoletetransitiveTo trouble; afflict; make anxious.

Origin

Proto-Indo-European*dʰrebʰ-“to become thick or cloudy, curdle, ferment”
Proto-Germanic*drōbijaną“to disturb, excite, make muddy”
Old Englishdrēfan
Middle Englishdreven
Englishdreve

From Middle English dreven (also droven), from Old English drēfan, *drōfian (“to trouble, vex, agitate, disturb the mind of”), from Proto-Germanic *drōbijaną (“to disturb, excite, make muddy”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰrebʰ- (“to become thick or cloudy, curdle, ferment”). Cognate with Low German dröven, Dutch droeven (“to be sad, grieve”), German trüben (“to dull, dim, cloud, tarnish, trouble”), Swedish bedröva (“to grieve, sadden, distress”). Related to droff.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic

Full word history & related roots →