An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Draht

by Friedrich Kluge

Draht, masculine, ‘wire, file,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German drât, masculine; compare Dutch draad, Anglo-Saxon þrœ̂d, equivalent to English thread, Old Icelandic þráðr, Gothic *þrêþs; a dental derivative of the Teutonic root þrê, ‘to turn, twist,’ which appears in Modern High German drehen. The pre-Teutonic trê lies at the base of Greek τρῆσις, ‘hole,’ which is identical in form with Modern High German Draht; for the meaning compare drehen, Darm.