herry

From Middle English heryen, herien, from Old English herian (“to extol, praise, commend, help”), from Proto-Germanic *hazjaną (“to call, praise”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱens- (“to speak in a florid, solemn style, attest, witness”). Cognate with Middle High German haren (“to call, shout”), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌶𐌾𐌰𐌽 (hazjan, “to praise”), Latin cēnseō (“inspect, appraise, estimate”, verb), Latin cēnsus (“estimation”). See censor, census.

• herye

herry (third-person singular simple present herries, present participle herrying, simple past and past participle herried)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To honour, praise or celebrate.
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, 1805, H. J. Todd (editorial notes), The Works of Edmund Spenser, page 185,

     Thenceforth it firmely was eſtabliſhed, / And for Apolloes temple highly herried.

• herrier
• herrying

From earlier hery, from Middle English herien, herȝen, from Old English herġian (“to ravage, plunder, lay waste, harry; seize, take, capture”), from Proto-Germanic *harjōną (“to devastate, lay waste”). More at harry.

• hery

herry (third-person singular simple present herries, present participle herrying, simple past and past participle herried)

1. (transitive, obsolete, Scotland) Alternative form of harry
   • 1728, Robert Lindsay, Robert Freebairn, The History of Scotland: From 21 February, 1436, to March, 1565, page 44,

     In the Spring of the Year thereafter, this inteſtine War, within the Bowels of this Commonweal, began to increase ay more and more; and ſo continued two Years; during the which Time, the Douglaſſes burnt and herried all Lands pertaining to the King and his Aſſiſters; and alſo to them that were not plain on his Faction.

   • 1822, James Hogg, The Three Perils of Man; Or, War, Women, and Witchcraft‎, page 228:

     The heroic Sim flew to horse, and desired all that were friends to the Scots to follow, while Laidlaw addressed his compeers, saying, "Up, lads, and let us ride; our host must not be herried while we are under his roof."

   • c. 1830, Andrew Picken, The Deer-Stalkers of Glenskiach, 1840, page 38,

     The victories of Inverlochy, of Alderne, and of Alford, the herrying of Argyleshire, and the sacking of Dundee, could scarcely make up for the terrible toils encountered in climhing the bleak precipices of the west, in wading through drifts of snow among the mountains during the depths of winter, […] .

• herrier
• herrying