Etymograph

English

trey

Trey may come from Anglo-Norman trei, from Old French trois ‘three’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tréyes.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tréyes1‘three’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trejes1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trēs1‘three’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrēs1‘three’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400trois2as treis‘three’uncertain
  6. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400trei2uncertain
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500trey2
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1674trey2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old French trois
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English trey
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1674, Charles Cotton, London: R. Cutler: “Before you begin the Game at Picket, you must…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tréyesWiktionary, Old French trois‘three’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trejesWiktionary, Old French troisreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trēsWiktionary, Old French trois‘three’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrēsWiktionary, Old French trois‘three’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400troisWiktionary, English treyas treis‘three’uncertain
  6. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400treiWiktionary, English treyuncertain
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500treyWiktionary, English trey
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1674treyWiktionary, English trey. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1674, Charles Cotton, London: R. Cutler: “Before you begin the Game at Picket, you must…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *tréyes ‘three’

three, tri, tern, troika, 11 more

through Latin trēs ‘three’

distribution, contribute, tribute, tribe, tribal, tribunal, trinity, trio, tribune, tres, triplex, 9 more

through Middle English trey

tray

Today it means

noun A playing card or die with the rank of three.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “trey”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Old French trois. 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 *tréyes / trey

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