Etymology Dictionary

IMBRUE, IMBREW, EMBREW,  to moisten, drench.  (F.,—L.)   '[Mine eyes] With teares no more imbrue your mistresse face;' Turberville, The Lover Hoping Assuredly.   'Imbrew'd in guilty blood;' Spenser, F. Q. i. 7. 47.—O.F. embruer; Cot. gives 's’embruer, to imbrue or bedable himself with.'   Allied to O. Ital. imbevere, which Florio gives as equivalent to imbuire, 'to sinke into, to wet or moisten in, to steepe into, to embrue;' cf. mod. Ital. imbevere, to imbibe.   β. The O.F. embruer is formed, like mod. F. abreuver, from a causal verb -bevrer, to give to drink, turned into -brever in the 16th century, and thence into -bruer.   See abreuver in Brachet.   γ. This causal verb is founded on O.F. bevre (F. boire), to drink; from Lat. bibere, to drink.   δ. Hence imbrue is the causal of to imbibe, and signifies 'to make to imbibe,' to soak, drench.   See Imbibe.   ➩ Probably it has often been confounded with imbue, which is really its doublet; see Imbue.   Utterly unconnected with E. brew, with which it is sometimes supposed to be allied.