*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of draff

From Middle English draf, likely from an unrecorded Old English *dræf, from Proto-Germanic *drabaz.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A byproduct from a brewery, a distillery, or both, often fed to pigs or cattle as part of their ration; often synonymous with distillers' grains, brewers' spent grains, or both (when not differentiated); usually differentiated from potale, at least in technical use, although broad, nontechnical use has often lumped all such byproducts together, especially in the past.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English draf, likely from an unrecorded Old English *dræf, from Proto-Germanic *drabaz.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentiondrafenm
  • Inherited-form mention*dræfang
  • Inherited-form mention*drabazgem-pro
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "draf"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English draf"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "*dræf"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English *dræf"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*drabaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *drabaz"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "draf",
      "draf#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "*dræf",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/dræf"
    ],
    [
      "*drabaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/drabaz"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A byproduct from a brewery, a distillery, or both, often fed to pigs or cattle as part of their ration; often synonymous with distillers' grains, brewers' spent grains, or both (when not differentiated); usually differentiated from potale, at least in technical use, although broad, nontechnical use has often lumped all such byproducts together, especially in the past."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable",
        "usually"
      ],
      "recordId": "d91cd81994747f439010c4870174af73f12b03faaf11cd567fffbff2b89859fc",
      "rawRecordSha256": "a071eaf8de6f27ad1964de4df31b4c4874c0ab197c67b4e2f568223f4164d7f7",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2471646
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for draff →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-ZHJhZmY