dreich

/dɹiːk/

Etymology

The adjective is borrowed from Scots dreich (“hard to bear, dreary, tedious, wearisome; interminable, long-winded; dull, uninteresting; slow, tardy; doleful, gloomy; baffling, difficult; difficult to reach, inaccessible”), from Middle English dregh, dri, drie (“burdensome; depressing, dismal; large, tall; lasting, long; long-suffering, patient; tedious; of blows: hard, heavy; of the face: unchanging, unmoved; of a person: strong, valorous”) [and other forms], from Old English *drēog, drēoh (“earnest; fit; sober”), and then probably partly: * shortened from Old English ġedrēog (“calm, quiet; sober; fit, suitable”, adjective), from ġe- (prefix forming adjectives of association or similarity) + Proto-Germanic *dreugaz (“enduring, lasting”) (from *dreuganą (“to serve, be a retainer”), from Pro

dreich means extending for a long distance or time, especially when tedious or wearisome; long-drawn-out, protracted; also, of speech or writing: unnecessarily verbose; long-winded. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.

dreich is pronounced /dɹiːk/.

Why “dreich” is a great word

DREICH — [Adjective] Extending for a long time in a tedious, wearisome, or bleakly gloomy manner, especially describing protracted, dull, or dismal weather. From Scots dreich, from Middle English dregh, drie, from Old English *drēog, drēoh ("earnest, fit, sober") and probably shortened from Old English ġedrēog ("calm, fit"), from Proto-Germanic *dreugaz ("enduring, lasting"). Unlike "dreary," which emphasizes a depressing, lifeless dullness, or "protracted," a neutral term for extension, dreich burdens the passage of time itself with a sodden, negative weight. It is the unvarying, low-slung grey of a sky that has forgotten the sun for weeks; the slow, cold seep of damp through wool; the hypnotic drip from a clogged gutter on an endless afternoon. The word is a patient verdict on a world that insists on taking its time to be miserable.

adj

Extending for a long distance or time, especially when tedious or wearisome; long-drawn-out, protracted; also, of speech or writing: unnecessarily verbose; long-winded.“So Alec showed her the letter, 'twas long and dreich and went on and on; […]”
Not enjoyable or interesting; boring, dull.“VVhen thou an' I vvere young an' ſkiegh, / An' ſtable-meals at Fairs vvere driegh, / Hovv thou vvad prance, an' ſnore, an' ſkriegh, / An' tak the road!”
Bleak, cheerless, dismal, dreary, miserable.“But he's lying i' such dree poverty,—and niver a friend to go near him,—niver a person to speak a kind word t' him.”
suitably serious or solemn
of a person: patient, stoic, tolerant, resolute
Slow, sluggish; specifically, of a person: tending to delay or procrastinate (especially when paying for something).“What think ye o' yon bonny hill yonder, lifting its brow to the moon? […] [M]aybe we will win there the night yet, God sain us, though our minny [a horse] here's rather driegh in the upgang.”

noun

A tedious or troublesome task; also, the most tedious or troublesome part of a task.
Bleakness, gloom; specifically, gloomy (cold, overcast, rainy, etc.) weather.