drail

English

Etymology

From Middle English *drailen (attested as drailed), a variant of Middle English trailen (“to hang loosely, drag along, drag away”), from a merger of Old French trailer, traillier (“to trail”) and Old English trǣġlian, trǣġelian (“to pluck, pull away”). The alteration of trailen to drailen was probably due to influence from Middle English dragan, drawen (“to drag, draw”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dɹeɪl/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪl

Noun

drail (plural drails)

1. (fishing) A hook with a lead shank.
2. (fishing) The piece of lead around the shank of such a hook.
3. The iron bow of a plough from which the traces draw.

Verb

drail (third-person singular simple present drails, present participle drailing, simple past and past participle drailed)

1. (fishing, obsolete, intransitive) To trawl.

   drailing for mackerel

References

• “drail”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• LIDAR, Laird, laird, larid, liard, lidar