Etymograph

English

fraist

Fraist comes from Old Norse freista ‘to try, tempt, make trial of’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *per-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-1‘to try, risk’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fraistōną1‘to try’reconstructed
  3. Old Norsec. 800–1350freista1‘to try, tempt, make trial of’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500fraisten1‘to test, put to the test’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1540fraist1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English fraist
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1540, Destruction of Troy:: “Þen found he no frekes to fraist on his…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-Wiktionary, English fraist‘to try, risk’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fraistōnąWiktionary, English fraist‘to try’reconstructed
  3. Old Norsec. 800–1350freistaWiktionary, English fraist‘to try, tempt, make trial of’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500fraistenWiktionary, English fraist‘to test, put to the test’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1540fraistWiktionary, English fraist. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1540, Destruction of Troy:: “Þen found he no frekes to fraist on his…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘to try, risk’

before, first, support, far, per, report, further, price, private, press, fear, opportunity, pre, primary, practice, prior, prime, appreciate, port, prize, afford, pregnant, ford, forth, precious, practical, interpretation, privilege, par, ferry, fare, parade, porch, pardon, primitive, prix, pirate, praise, interpreter, privy, 156 more

Today it means

verb To try; test; prove; put to the proof; make trial (of).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “fraist”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *per- / fraist

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