*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of drill

From Middle Dutch drillen (“bore, move in a circle”).

6 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 6 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 ↗
noun

A tool or machine used to remove material so as to create a hole, typically by plunging a rotating cutting bit into a stationary workpiece. · The portion of a drilling tool that drives the bit. · An activity done as an exercise or practice (especially a military exercise), particularly in preparation for some possible future event or occurrence. · A short and highly repeatable sports training exercise designed to hone a particular skill that may be useful in competition.

verb

To create (a hole) by removing material with a drill (tool). · To practice, especially in (or as in) a military context. · To cause to drill (practice); to train, especially in military arts. · To repeat an idea frequently in order to encourage someone to remember it.

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

From Middle Dutch drillen (“bore, move in a circle”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

This page abbreviates 8 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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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

An agricultural implement for making holes for sowing seed, and sometimes so formed as to contain seeds and drop them into the hole made. · A light furrow or channel made to put seed into, when sowing. · A row of seed sown in a furrow.

verb

To sow (seeds) by dribbling them along a furrow or in a row.

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

Perhaps the same as Etymology 3; compare German Rille which can also mean "small furrow".

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

A small trickling stream; a rill.

verb

To cause to flow in drills or rills or by trickling; to drain by trickling.

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

Uncertain. Compare the same sense of trill, and German trillen, drillen. Attestation predates Etymology 1.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
verb

To protract, lengthen out; fritter away, spend (time) aimlessly. · To entice or allure; to decoy; with on. · To cause to slip or waste away by degrees.

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

From Middle English drillen (“to delay, defer, put off”), of origin unknown.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentiondrillenenm · to delay, defer, put off
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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Source etymology 5

Original entry ↗
noun

An Old World monkey of West Africa, Mandrillus leucophaeus, similar in appearance to the mandrill, but lacking the colorful face.

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

] Source unknown. Probably of African origin; compare mandrill.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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Source etymology 6

Original entry ↗
noun

A strong, durable cotton fabric with a strong bias (diagonal) in the weave.

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

From German Drillich (“denim, canvas, drill”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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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 drill →

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-ZHJpbGw