dregs

British  

/ drɛɡz /

plural noun

1. solid particles that tend to settle at the bottom of some liquids, such as wine or coffee

2. residue or remains

3. slang a despicable person

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Etymology

Origin of dregs

C14 dreg, from Old Norse dregg; compare Icelandic dreggjar dregs, Latin fracēs oil dregs

Explanation

Those little grains of tea or coffee left at the bottom of the cup are known as the dregs. The dregs are the least wanted portion, or the residue. Literally speaking, dregs refers to sediment at the bottom of a liquid such as tea, but figuratively you can use dregs to mean “a small amount left.” If you are running out of food in your refrigerator, you might say, “We’re down to the dregs in here.” Dregs is also used in the same way as the expression “bottom of the barrel.” The “dregs of society,” for instance, is a negative phrase that describes people whom the speaker considers to be useless.

Example Sentences

“Tow” might not be a knockout, but it’s far from the dregs of cinema.

From Salon • Mar. 22, 2026

“Bugonia” star Jesse Plemons stood near the main lobby bar talking with friends and posing for pictures with fans while finishing the dregs of a drink.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 16, 2026

Models suggest that the last dregs of the magma ocean crystallized into dense minerals including ilmenite, a mineral containing titanium and iron.

From Science Daily • Apr. 8, 2024

Many fishermen feel they're being left the dregs once the seas have been divided up by other industries.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2023

Town work, the kind where you get money, instead of old cabbage leaves and the dregs of the beer.

From "Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village" by Laura Amy Schlitz