Obs. exc. Sc. and north. dial. Forms: 1 thru(u)ch, throuch, 1–3 þruh, (1 þryh), 4 throuȝ, þrouhwe, 4–5 þrugh, þrouȝ, 4–6 throgh(e, 4–6 (9 Sc.) thrugh, 5 thrughe, throw(e, throh, 6 threwgh, Sc. throch, throwch, throuche, throcht, throucht, 7 throughe, 6– through; 6– Sc. throuch, (9 threuch, thruch, throoch, north. dial. thruff). β. 4 thoru, 5 thorow, thorw, thurwhe, thwrwe, thurgh, 6 thorgh, thorowgh, 7 thorough. [OE. þrúh, a fem. cons. stem, oblique cases þrýh, cogn. with ON. þró fem. (pl. þrœr) a receptacle hollowed out, a tube, chest, trough, whence steinþró stone-chest, stone-coffin; cf. also OHG. drûha, truhâ (MHG. trûhe, truche, Ger. truhe), which agrees in sense, but not in the initial consonant: see Kluge, Etymol. Wörterb.]
† 1. (Only in OE.) A trough, pipe, channel for water. [So ON. þró trough, watering trough.]
a. 700. Epinal Gloss. (O.E.T.), 1000. Tubo, thruu[c]h [Corpus ðruh, Erfurt thruch]. Ibid., 232. Caractis [cataractes], uun(e)terthruch [Corpus uueterþruh, Erfurt uaeterthrouch].
a. 900. O. E. Martyrol., 2 Sept. Þa ʓesomnodon þa sticceo hi in þa þruh, þurh þa þe þæt water fleow; þa ne meahte þæt wæter flowan.
† 2. A hollow receptacle for a dead body: orig. perh. a stone cist or coffin; hence a coffin generally, e.g., of wood; also a grave, tomb, sepulcher. Obs.
a. 900. trans. Bæda’s Hist., IV. xiv. [xi.] (1890), 296. Þa wæs se lichoma sponne lengra þære þryh.
c. 1000. Ælfric, Hom., I. 216. Tweʓen ʓelyfede men … bebyriʓdon his lic ær æfene, on niwere ðryh. Ibid., II. 262. Þa ʓeðafode Pilatus þæt hi … ða ðruh ʓe-innseʓelodon.
c. 1275. Passion of our Lord, 511, in O. E. Misc., 51. Ioseph … hyne leyde in one þruh of stone.
a. 1300. Cursor M., 24637 (Edin.). Al til his þruh þai þrang. Ibid. (13[?]), 17288 + 13 (Cott.). Our lord opend not his throgh when he ros at morne.
13[?]. Guy Warw. (A.), 7306 + st. 296. Þay tok a þrouȝ of marbel ston, & leyd his bodi þer-in anon.
13[?]. Propr. Sanct., 179 (Vernon MS.), in Herrig’s Archiv, LXXXI. 83. On domus-day, Al vre þrouhwes þen schul ouerþrowe.
c. 1400. Laud Troy Bk., 15570. Now he is ded & lith in throw [rhyme now].
c. 1410. Chron. Eng. (Ritson), 747. Ant leggen in a throh of ston.
1483. Cath. Angl., 386/2. A Thrughe (A. Throghe), mauseolum … cippus;… vbi a grawe.
β. 13[?]. Cursor M., 17390 (Cott.). Þan þai badd be-for ham call Þat gett [v.r. kepte] þe thoru þe knightes all.
c. 1400. Trevisa’s Higden (Rolls), VII. 535 (MS. β). On caas ȝe mowe kepe my body … lay hit in a thorow [MS. γ, þrouȝ] of stoon and heleth hit with a lidde of lede.
a. 1450. Thurghis [see THRO a.1 1 b].
3. A large slab of stone, etc., laid upon a tomb; a flat grave-stone or grave-cover; also, a table gravestone resting on feet. (See THROUGH-STONE1.)
a. 1350. St. Nicholas, 384, in Horstm., Altengl. Leg. (1881), 16. Enterd he was in toumbe of stone And a marble thrugh laid him opon.
1523. Test. Ebor. (Surtees), V. 174. To lay oppon my body & Alicie my wir a conveniente thrughe of stone.
1560. in Edinb. Burgh Rec., 62. To reparrall the kirk, to lay the throwchis thairof of new and sparge the samyn.
1593. Rites of Durham (Surtees, 1903), 15. Two lyons … artificially wrought and sett forth all in brasse marueilously beautifyinge the said through of marble.
1606. [see THORTERSOME].
1630. Vestry Bks. (Surtees), 185. Through the ignorance or negligence of the sexton or others,… the throughs and flaggs have been brooke, and once taken up never so well laid downe.
a. 1663. Bp. Bramhall, Will. I to be buried in the middle alley within the churche of Alhallowes in Pontefracte under the greate blewe through at the end of the Maior and Aldresses stall.
1777. Bothkennar Par. Reg., 8 July, in N. & Q., 9th Ser. II. 237/1. John Simpson, tenant in Crofthead, hath 2 lairs with throughs in the churchyard of Bothkennar.
1804. Stagg, Misc. Poems (1808), 4. Then great Job Bruff gat on a thruff.
1864. W. Chambers, Hist. Peebles., 295. Throuchs or flat table-like stones.
Through, sb.2: see THROUCH.
