An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/treffen

by Friedrich Kluge

treffen, vb., ‘to hit, strike; guess; occur, happen,’ from MidHG. trëffen, OHG. trëffan, str. vb., ‘to hit, reach, fight’; comp. AS. drëpan, OIc. drepa, ‘to hit, push, strike.’ As to the Teut. root drep (pre-Teut. dhreb) contained in these cognates, nothing positive can be asserted. Comp. Eintracht.