drury

See also: Drury

English

Alternative forms

• druery
• drewery

Etymology

From Old French druerie, droerie (“love, friendship”) et al., from dru (“friend”).

Noun

drury

1. (obsolete) Love, especially sexual love; courtship, sex.
2. (obsolete) A love token or keepsake, a physical object symbolic of a loving relationship.
3. (obsolete) A beloved person; a sweetheart.
4. (obsolete) A beloved thing; a treasure.
   • c. 1385, William Langland, Piers Plowman, section I:

     It is as derworth a drewery · as dere god hym-seluen.

References

• James A. H. Murray [et al.], editors (1884–1928), “Druery”, in A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (Oxford English Dictionary), volumes III (D–E), London: Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 686, column 3: “Love, esp. sexual love love-making, courtship; often illicit love, amour.”.

Anagrams

• durry