Meaning

originProbably partly: * derived from the verb (see etymology 1); and * borrowed from Scots dree, or derived from its etymon Middle English dri, drie, dregh, dreghe (“annoyance, trouble; grief; period of time”), possibly from Middle English dregh, dri, drie (“burdensome; depressing, dismal; large, tall; lasting, long; long-suffering, patient; tedious; of blows: hard, heavy; of the face: unchanging,…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0