morning dew that collects on plants and grass, particularly used in older or dialectal English.
From Old English dēaw-rēt or similar construction, combining dew with ret (meaning to soak). This archaic term reflects early European agricultural understanding of moisture and plant treatment processes.
Dewret was an important concept to medieval farmers because dew-soaked fibers were easier to work with—they knew that moisture softened flax and hemp for retting (the process of soaking plants to separate fibers), so morning dew was actually useful!
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.