thresh

T1H4R1E1S1H4
/θɹɛʃ/

verb

To separate the grain from the straw or husks (chaff) by mechanical beating, with a flail or machinery, or by driving animals over them.

UncommonScrabble 12

Meanings

verbthresh (third-person singular simple present threshes, present participle threshing, simple past and past participle threshed)

present singular third person threshes · participle present threshing · participle past threshed · past threshed

  1. transitiveagricultureTo separate the grain from the straw or husks (chaff) by mechanical beating, with a flail or machinery, or by driving animals over them.
    1. intransitivetransitiveagricultureTo be so separated, or to be capable of being so separated.
  2. literarytransitiveTo beat soundly, usually with some tool such as a stick or whip; to drub.
  3. intransitiveliteraryTo violently toss the limbs about.

    The jay fell all lopsidedly and threshing, as though it were having a fit. The ground killed it.

    1967, J. A. Baker, The Peregrine, page 41
  4. literarytransitiveusuallyTo belabor; to go over repeatedly, especially an argument.
  5. nauticalTo drive through adverse conditions (wind, waves).

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar

verbmove or stir about violently

verbmove like a flail; thresh about

Similar
Broader

verbbeat the seeds out of a grain

Similar
Broader

verbgive a thrashing to; beat hard

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*terh₁-“to rub, turn; to drill, pierce”
  2. Proto-Germanic*þreskaną“to thresh; to tread”
  3. Old Englishþerscan
  4. Middle Englishthreschen
  5. Englishthresh

From Middle English threschen, thresche, threschyn, threshen, thresshen, tressyn, þreisshe, þresshe, from Old English þerscan, þrexan, from Proto-Germanic *þreskaną (“to thresh; to tread”), from Proto-Indo-European *terh₁- (“to rub, turn; to drill, pierce”). Doublet of thrash. Cognates Cognate with Dutch dorsen (“to thresh; to thrash”), German and Luxembourgish dreschen (“to thresh; to thrash”), Yiddish דרעשן (dreshn, “to thresh”), Danish tærske (“to thresh”), Faroese treskja (“to thresh”), Icelandic þreskja (“to thresh”), Norwegian Nynorsk treska, treske, treskja, treskje (“to thrash”), Swedish tröska (“to thresh”), Gothic 𐌸𐍂𐌹𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌽 (þriskan, “to thresh”), Finnish rehkiä (“to drudge; to toil”); also Welsh taradr (“auger, wimble; awl, borer; drill”), Latin terō (“to rub or triturate; to wear away or wear out, consume; to tread; to press with a mill; to pass, spend”), Greek τρίβω (trívo, “to grate; to rub”), Albanian tjerr (“to spin”), Belarusian це́рці (cjérci, “to rub; to polish; to pinch; to grind”), Bulgarian три́я (tríja, “to rub; to chafe; to grind”), Czech třít (“to rub; to spawn”), Polish tarć, treć, trzeć, trzyć (“to rub; to shred; to cut; to chafe; to crush; to spawn”), Russian тере́ть (terétʹ, “to rub; to polish; to grind”), Serbo-Croatian тр̏ти, tȑti (“to rub; to cause friction; to scour; to break, crush”), Slovak trieť (“to rub”), Slovene treti (“to crack open; to rub”), Ukrainian те́рти (térty, “to rub; to scrub”), Armenian թուր (tʻur, “sword”), Sogdian ܕܣܦܪܛܪ (dsprtr, “hand towel”), Hittite 𒋻𒌑𒍣 (tar-ú-zi, “to perform a round dance, to dance in twisting manner”), Tocharian A and Tocharian B tärk- (“to allow, let; to let go”), Sanskrit तर्कु (tarku, “spindle”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Afrikaans dors
  • dorsto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Arabic دَرَسَ
  • دَرَسَ (darasa)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Basque eultzitu
  • eultzituto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Bulgarian вършея
  • вършея (văršeja)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Catalan trillar
  • trillarto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Chinese Mandarin 打穀 /打谷, 脫粒 /脱粒
  • 打穀 /打谷 (dǎgǔ)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • 脫粒 /脱粒 (tuōlì)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Czech mlátit
  • mlátitto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Danish tærske
  • tærsketo separate the grain from the straw or husks
Dutch dorsen
  • dorsento separate the grain from the straw or husks
Esperanto draŝi
  • draŝito separate the grain from the straw or husks
Finnish puida
  • puidato separate the grain from the straw or husks
French battre, fouler
  • battreto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • foulerto separate the grain from the straw or husks
German dreschen
  • dreschento separate the grain from the straw or husks
Greek αλωνίζω
  • αλωνίζω (alonízo)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Hebrew דש
  • דש (dash)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Hindi गाहना
  • गाहना (gāhnā)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Hungarian csépel
  • csépelto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Icelandic þreskja
  • þreskjato separate the grain from the straw or husks
Italian trebbiare
  • trebbiareto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Japanese 脱穀する
  • 脱穀する (dakkoku suru)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Korean 뒹굴다, 도리깨질하다
  • 뒹굴다 (dwinggulda)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • 도리깨질하다 (dorikkaejilhada)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Latin trituro
  • trituroto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Latvian kult
  • kultto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Norwegian Bokmål treske
  • tresketo separate the grain from the straw or husks
Polish młócić
  • młócićto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Portuguese malhar, espalhar
  • malharto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • espalharto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • debulharto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Romanian treiera
  • treierato separate the grain from the straw or husks
Russian молоти́ть
  • молоти́ть (molotítʹ)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Scottish Gaelic buail
  • buailto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Slovak mlátiť
  • mlátiťto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Spanish trillar, desgranar
  • trillarto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • desgranarto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • apalearto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • azotarto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Swedish tröska
  • tröskato separate the grain from the straw or husks
Turkish harman çevirmek, harmanlamak
  • harman çevirmekto separate the grain from the straw or husks
  • harmanlamakto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Ukrainian молоти́ти
  • молоти́ти (molotýty)to separate the grain from the straw or husks
Vietnamese đập
  • đậpto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Welsh dyrnu
  • dyrnuto separate the grain from the straw or husks
Yiddish דרעשן
  • דרעשן (dreshn)to separate the grain from the straw or husks

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with thresh

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

thresh. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thresh

MLA

“thresh.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thresh. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “thresh,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thresh.

Source: thresh on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.