dreg
Americannoun
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dregs, the sediment of liquids; lees; grounds.
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Usually dregs. the least valuable part of anything.
the dregs of society.
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a small remnant; any small quantity.
noun
Etymology
Origin of dreg
1250–1300; Middle English < Old Norse dreg yeast (plural dreggjar dregs); cognate with Old Swedish dräg dregs
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But their pacemen, despite summoning up every last dreg of energy, were not quite disciplined enough on a sluggish track.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 24, 2011
He out-aced the game's best server of recent times 24-9 and drained the American's legendary fighting spirit to the last dreg to win 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 23, 2011
Pike thought to look up just as I was pouring the bucket of dreg onto him from the edge of the low roof above.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Without a clan system or union contact or a family, Nailer and Nita were left with the dreg work, running messages, hauling small items, begging.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
The great streams of traffic were busier than ever, the backwaters emptier, and Gray's Inn a basin drained to the last dreg of visible humanity.
From Mr. Justice Raffles by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
