English
fleech
Fleech comes from Middle Dutch fletsen ‘to flatter, fawn’.
- Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500fletsen‘to flatter, fawn’
- Englishearliest quotation 1884fleech
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500fletsen‘to flatter, fawn’
- Englishearliest quotation 1884fleech
Earliest quotation: 1884, John MacKay Wilson, Tales of the Borders and of Scotland: “I fleeched him, and I coaxed him, and I…”
Every English word from Middle Dutch fletsen
Today it means
verb To wheedle; coax; cajole; induce with fair words; flatter.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle Dutch fletsen / fleech