Meaning

noun a branch of the Tai languages

originSpelling form indicating original pronunciation of tea. The digraph ea represented /ɛː/ in Early Modern English; it later merged chiefly with ee, but regionally or sporadically with ay (in standard English break, great, steak). Compare the song Polly put the kettle on, where tea rhymes with away.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0