An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/gräßlich

by Friedrich Kluge

gräßlich, adjective, ‘horrible, hideous, ghastly,’ formed from early Modern High German graß; the latter is derived from Middle High German graȥ, ‘furious, angry,’ of which Old High German preserves only the adverb graȥȥo, ‘violently, very’; Gothic *grata-, as well as correspondences in the remaining dialects, is wanting. Gothic grêtan, ‘to weep’ (Middle High German grâȥen), is scarcely allied.