dregs

English

Etymology

See dreg.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dɹɛɡz/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛɡz

Noun

dregs pl (plural only)

1. (collectively) The sediment settled at the bottom of a liquid; the lees in a container of unfiltered wine.
2. (figuratively, the dregs) The worst and lowest part of something.

   the dregs of society

   • 1826, [Mary Shelley], chapter IX, in The Last Man. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC:

     Yet even now I had not drunk the bitter potion to the dregs; I was not yet persuaded of my loss; I did not yet feel in every pulsation, in every nerve, in every thought, that I remained alone of my race - that I was The Last Man.

Usage notes

• The singular form dreg is far less common, but the phrase to the last dreg still has currency.

Synonyms

The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. For synonyms and antonyms you may use the templates {{syn|en|...}} or {{ant|en|...}}.

• debris, deposit, draff, dross, exuviate, feculence, grounds, grouts, lees, loser, orts, outcast, rabble, refuse, residue, residuum, riffraff, rubbish, scum, sediment, settling, trash, trub

Derived terms

• tofu dregs

Translations

settled sediment

• Afrikaans: afsaksel
• Armenian: տականք (hy) (takankʿ), մրուր (hy) (mrur), դիրտ (hy) (dirt), նստվածք (hy) (nstvackʿ)
• Catalan: pòsit (ca) m, solatge m
• Czech: sedlina (cs) f
• Dutch: bezinksel (nl) n, droesem (nl) m
• Esperanto: feĉo
• Finnish: sakka (fi), porot (fi) pl
• French: lie (fr) f
• Galician: borra (gl) f
• Georgian: ცხიმოვანი ნარჩენები (cximovani narčenebi)
• German: Bodensatz (de) m, Satz (de) m
• Greek:

  Ancient: τρύξ f sg (trúx)

• Hebrew: מִשְׁקָע‎ (he) m
• Icelandic: dreggjar m pl, botnfall (is) n
• Irish: moirt f, dríodar m, amhaisc f (literary)
• Italian: sedimento (it)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: تِڵپ‎ (tillp), تِڵپە‎ (tillpe), تِڵف‎ (tillf), تِڵتە‎ (tillte)

  Southern Kurdish: سِڵپ‎ (sillp)

• Latin: faex f
• Latvian: duļķes f pl
• Maori: waipara, whaipara
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Ottoman Turkish: تلوه‎ (telve)
• Persian: لرد‎ (fa) (lerd), درد‎ (fa) (dord)
• Polish: fusy (pl) pl
• Portuguese: borra (pt) f
• Romanian: zaț (ro) n, drojdie (ro) f, sediment (ro) n
• Russian: оса́док (ru) m (osádok), отсто́й (ru) m (otstój), отбро́сы (ru) m pl (otbrósy), муть (ru) f (mutʹ), гу́ща (ru) f (gúšča)
• Sardinian: feche, feghe, fexa, fexi
• Spanish: poso (es) m, concho (es) f, hez (es) f, depósito (es)
• Swedish: bottensats (sv) c, drägg (sv) c
• Tajik: дурда (durda), таҳшин (tahšin), шитта (šitta)
• Ukrainian: гу́ща f (húšča)
• Vietnamese: cặn (vi)
• Yiddish: הושטשע‎ f (hushtshe)

the worst and lowest

• Armenian: տականք (hy) (takankʿ)
• Czech: vyvrhel m
• Esperanto: aĉoj pl, aĉuloj pl (about people, derogatory)
• Finnish: pohjasakka (fi), roskajoukko (fi), roskaväki (fi)
• French: lie (fr) f
• Esperanto: feĉo
• German: Abschaum (de) m, Dreck (de) m
• Greek:

  Ancient: σκύβαλον n (skúbalon)

• Icelandic: sori m, úrhrak n
• Italian: feccia (it) f
• Latin: faex f
• Portuguese: escória (pt) f
• Romanian: drojdie (ro) f
• Russian: отбро́сы (ru) m pl (otbrósy), отре́бье (ru) n (otrébʹje), подо́нки (ru) m pl (podónki)
• Spanish: escoria (es) f, mugre (es) f, hez (es) f
• Swedish: bottenskrap (sv) n, drägg (sv) n (about people, derogatory), avskum (sv) n
• Vietnamese: cặn bã (vi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Italian: ^{(please verify)} feccia (it) f, ^{(please verify)} posatura f

Anagrams

• regds.