English word origin

Etymology of drib

From dialectal English drib (compare also drub), a variant from Middle English drepen (“to hit, strike, slay”), from Old English drepan (“to strike, kill, overcome”), from Proto-Germanic *drepaną (“to hit, strike”).

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

verb

To cut off; chop off. · To cut off little by little; cheat by small and reiterated tricks; purloin. · To entice step by step. · To appropriate unlawfully; to embezzle.

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

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentiondrepenenm
Inherited-form mentiondrepanang
Inherited-form mention*drepanągem-pro

This page abbreviates 6 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "drepen",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to hit, strike, slay"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English drepen (“to hit, strike, slay”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "drepan",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to strike, kill, overcome"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English drepan (“to strike, kill, overcome”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*drepaną",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to hit, strike"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *drepaną (“to hit, strike”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "drib",
      "drib#English"
    ],
    [
      "drub",
      "drub#English"
    ],
    [
      "drepen",
      "drepen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "drepan",
      "drepan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*drepaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/drepaną"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To cut off; chop off.",
        "To cut off little by little; cheat by small and reiterated tricks; purloin.",
        "To entice step by step.",
        "To appropriate unlawfully; to embezzle."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "b95591d0ab7494588acf159d05e6387c55b114f0878194f922e019493291fe44",
      "rawRecordSha256": "672b5171eed39cec25102185edfc037bf0363bb3d274d3a6ca74905b92cc7860",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 229381
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 6,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

A drop.

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

From a variant of drip.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "drip",
      "drip#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A drop."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
      ],
      "recordId": "a43ac33f7070242858ca5f96a0a98f8c4c05648377f60c251a2a1323b8f6632e",
      "rawRecordSha256": "fb15603a7c2d7447e34ff1946b8cd090de016cb706af601bcda08103538d9aee",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 229382
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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}

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 drib →

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-ZHJpYg