*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of ree

From Middle English rei, reh, reoh, from Old English hrēoh (“rough, fierce, wild, angry, disturbed, troubled, stormy, tempestuous”), from Proto-Germanic *hreuhaz (“bad, wild”), from Proto-Indo-European *krewh₂- (“raw mea

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 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 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To become extremely excited; fly into a rage. · To drive into a state of excitement; fire with enthusiasm.

adj

Wild; fierce; outrageous; overexcited; frenzied; delirious; crazy. · Befuddled with liquor; half-drunk; tipsy.

noun

A state of befuddlement; intoxication. · A state of great excitement or frenzy.

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

From Middle English rei, reh, reoh, from Old English hrēoh (“rough, fierce, wild, angry, disturbed, troubled, stormy, tempestuous”), from Proto-Germanic *hreuhaz (“bad, wild”), from Proto-Indo-European *krewh₂- (“raw meat, fresh blood”). Cognate with Scots ree, rae, ray (“ree”), Old Saxon hrē (“evil, bad, angry”), Gothic 𐌹𐌽𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽 (inrauhtjan, “to become angry, rage against”). Related to Old English hrēaw (“raw, uncooked”). More at raw.

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.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "rei"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English rei"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "hrēoh",
        "4": "",
        "5": "rough, fierce, wild, angry, disturbed, troubled, stormy, tempestuous"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English hrēoh (“rough, fierce, wild, angry, disturbed, troubled, stormy, tempestuous”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*hreuhaz",
        "4": "",
        "5": "bad, wild"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *hreuhaz (“bad, wild”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*krewh₂-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "raw meat, fresh blood"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *krewh₂- (“raw meat, fresh blood”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "ree"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots ree"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "osx",
        "2": "hrē",
        "3": "",
        "4": "evil, bad, angry"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Saxon hrē (“evil, bad, angry”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "got",
        "2": "𐌹𐌽𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽",
        "3": "",
        "4": "to become angry, rage against"
      },
      "expansion": "Gothic 𐌹𐌽𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽 (inrauhtjan, “to become angry, rage against”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "ang",
        "2": "hrēaw",
        "3": "",
        "4": "raw, uncooked"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English hrēaw (“raw, uncooked”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "rei",
      "rei#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "reh",
      "reh#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "reoh",
      "reoh#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "hrēoh",
      "hreoh#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*hreuhaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/hreuhaz"
    ],
    [
      "*krewh₂-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/krewh₂-"
    ],
    [
      "ree",
      "ree#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "rae",
      "rae#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "ray",
      "ray#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "hrē",
      "hre#Old_Saxon"
    ],
    [
      "𐌹𐌽𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽",
      "𐌹𐌽𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽#Gothic"
    ],
    [
      "hrēaw",
      "hreaw#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "raw",
      "raw#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To become extremely excited; fly into a rage.",
        "To drive into a state of excitement; fire with enthusiasm."
      ],
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        "dialectal",
        "intransitive",
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 238927
    },
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Wild; fierce; outrageous; overexcited; frenzied; delirious; crazy.",
        "Befuddled with liquor; half-drunk; tipsy."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dialectal"
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 238925
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    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A state of befuddlement; intoxication.",
        "A state of great excitement or frenzy."
      ],
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        "dialectal"
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}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

To riddle; to sift; to separate or throw off.

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

Compare riddle (“a sieve”).

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "riddle",
      "riddle#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To riddle; to sift; to separate or throw off."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "dialectal",
        "obsolete"
      ],
      "recordId": "8b662c8f703daf938357b3621c2ca5194e0ab291b8aaa755d2499c24dcb1a4de",
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}

Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
noun

A small river or stream.

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

Of obscure origin. Perhaps from a rebracketing of ea with Old English þære, i.e. þære ēa becoming the ree. Alternatively, perhaps a variant (like rye, found in the placename Rye) of rith.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "ea",
      "ea"
    ],
    [
      "þære",
      "þære"
    ],
    [
      "Rye",
      "Rye"
    ],
    [
      "rith",
      "rith#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A small river or stream."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Essex",
        "dialectal",
        "obsolete"
      ],
      "recordId": "8367a85521d7e58d6622818b0cb45611501ed226d3f3a091754f7f39419200fe",
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 238929
    }
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  }
}

Source etymology 5

Original entry ↗
noun

A period of stormy or unsettled weather, especially one occurring somewhat predictably at a particular time of year.

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

From Old Norse hríð (“storm”), whence also Norwegian Nynorsk ri (“period with harsh weather”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Derivation mentionhríðnon
  • Cognate mentionrinn
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "hríð",
        "4": "",
        "5": "storm"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse hríð (“storm”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nn",
        "2": "ri",
        "3": "",
        "4": "period with harsh weather"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian Nynorsk ri (“period with harsh weather”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "hríð",
      "hríð#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "ri",
      "ri#Norwegian_Nynorsk"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A period of stormy or unsettled weather, especially one occurring somewhat predictably at a particular time of year."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland",
        "Shetland",
        "especially"
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 238930
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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 ree →

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-cmVl