An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Trespe

by Friedrich Kluge

Trespe, feminine, ‘brome-grass,’ a Saxon and Silesian word, from Middle High German (Middle German) trësp, ‘darnel,’ with the genuine High German variants trëfs, trëfse, masculine. Modern German dialects (e.g., Thuringian) have Treff (Swabian trefz), so that an originally term trëf is probable. Allied to Dutch dravik, Middle English drauk (Anglo-Saxon *drafoc); non-Teutonic cognates are wanting.