*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of drip

From Middle English drippen, druppen, from Old English drypan, from Proto-Germanic *drupjaną (“to fall in drops, drip”), from Proto-Germanic *drupô (“drop”). Akin to West Frisian drippe (“to drip”), Dutch druipen, druppe

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 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 fall one drop at a time. · To leak slowly. · To let fall in drops. · To have a superabundance of (something).

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

From Middle English drippen, druppen, from Old English drypan, from Proto-Germanic *drupjaną (“to fall in drops, drip”), from Proto-Germanic *drupô (“drop”). Akin to West Frisian drippe (“to drip”), Dutch druipen, druppelen (“to drip”), German Low German drüppen (“to drip”), German tropfen, tröpfeln (“to drip”), Norwegian Bokmål dryppe, Norwegian Nynorsk drypa (“to drip”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentiondrippenenm
  • Inherited-form mentiondrypanang
  • Inherited-form mention*drupjanągem-pro · to fall in drops, drip
  • Derivation mention*drupôgem-pro · drop
  • Cognate mentiondrippefy · to drip
  • Cognate mentiondruipennl
  • Cognate mentiontropfende
  • Cognate mentiondryppenb
  • Cognate mentiondrypann · to drip

This page abbreviates 4 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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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "drippen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English drippen"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
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        "2": "ang",
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      },
      "expansion": "Old English drypan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*drupjaną",
        "t": "to fall in drops, drip"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *drupjaną (“to fall in drops, drip”)"
    },
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      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *drupô (“drop”)"
    },
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        "2": "drippe",
        "t": "to drip"
      },
      "expansion": "West Frisian drippe (“to drip”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "druipen"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch druipen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nds-de",
        "2": "drüppen",
        "t": "to drip"
      },
      "expansion": "German Low German drüppen (“to drip”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "tropfen"
      },
      "expansion": "German tropfen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nb",
        "2": "dryppe"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian Bokmål dryppe"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nn",
        "2": "drypa",
        "t": "to drip"
      },
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    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "drippen",
      "drippen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "druppen",
      "druppen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "drypan",
      "drypan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*drupjaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/drupjaną"
    ],
    [
      "*drupô",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/drupô"
    ],
    [
      "drippe",
      "drippe#West_Frisian"
    ],
    [
      "druipen",
      "druipen#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "druppelen",
      "druppelen#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "drüppen",
      "drüppen#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "tropfen",
      "tropfen#German"
    ],
    [
      "tröpfeln",
      "tröpfeln#German"
    ],
    [
      "dryppe",
      "dryppe#Norwegian_Bokmål"
    ],
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      "drypa",
      "drypa#Norwegian_Nynorsk"
    ]
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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
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        "To fall one drop at a time.",
        "To leak slowly.",
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A drop of a liquid. · A falling or letting fall in drops; act of dripping. · An apparatus that slowly releases a liquid, especially one that intravenously releases drugs into a patient's bloodstream. · A limp, ineffectual, or uninteresting person.

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

From Middle English drippe, from the verb (see above). Compare West Frisian drip (“drip”), Dutch drup (“drip”), Danish dryp (“drip”). (style, swagger): Compare the verb sense "to have a superabundance of valuable things".

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentiondrippeenm
  • Cognate mentiondripfy · drip
  • Cognate mentiondrupnl · drip
  • Cognate mentiondrypda · drip

This page abbreviates 2 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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        "1": "en",
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    },
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      "name": "cog",
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        "2": "drip",
        "t": "drip"
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      "name": "cog",
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        "t": "drip"
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      "expansion": "Dutch drup (“drip”)"
    },
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      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
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        "t": "drip"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish dryp (“drip”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "sense",
      "args": {
        "1": "style, swagger"
      },
      "expansion": "(style, swagger):"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
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      "drippe",
      "drippe#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "drip",
      "drip#West_Frisian"
    ],
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      "drup",
      "drup#Dutch"
    ],
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      "dryp",
      "dryp#Danish"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A drop of a liquid.",
        "A falling or letting fall in drops; act of dripping.",
        "An apparatus that slowly releases a liquid, especially one that intravenously releases drugs into a patient's bloodstream.",
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

Alternative letter-case form of DRIP (“dividend reinvestment plan”)

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

Acronym.

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 drip →

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-ZHJpcA