An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Zähre

by Friedrich Kluge

Zähre, feminine, ‘tear,’ properly neuter plural of Middle High German zaher (*zacher), Old High German zahar (zahhar), masculine; the form with ch in Middle High German is inferred from the derivative zęchern, zachern, ‘to weep’ (Old High German hhr from hr). Compare Anglo-Saxon teár (from *teahor, with the variant tœhher), English tear, Old Icelandic tár (for *tahr-), Gothic tagr, neuter, ‘tear.’ A primitively Teutonic word in the form dakru, which is presupposed by Greek δάκρυ, Latin lacruma (for earlier dacruma), Old Irish dacr (dér), ‘tear.’ The equivalent Sanscrit áçru, if it stands for *daçru, is abnormal.