Where does “figuurlijk” come from?

figuurlijk (Dutch) comes from Dutch lijk, from Middle Dutch lijc, from Old Dutch līk, from Proto-West Germanic līk, from Proto-Germanic līką, from Proto-Indo-European leyǵ- — to bind, tie.

figuurlijk (Dutch): figurative

Definitions

figurative

Ancestry of “figuurlijk”, step by step

figuurlijk traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Dutch lijk

Step	Language	Word	Meaning
1	Dutch	lijk	The dead but otherwise intact body of a human or...
2	Middle Dutch	lijc	—
3	Old Dutch	līk	—
4	Proto-West Germanic	līk	body
5	Proto-Germanic	līką	body; corpse, dead body; leech-line, bolt-rope
6	Proto-Indo-European	leyǵ-	to bind, tie

via Dutch figuur

Step	Language	Word	Meaning
1	Dutch	figuur	figure
2	Middle Dutch	figure	—
3	Old French	figure	—
4	Latin	figūra	shape, form, figure
5	Latin	fingō	to shape, fashion, form, knead (dough)
6	Proto-Indo-European	dʰeyǵʰ-	to knead; to form, to shape

Every word from Proto-Indo-European leyǵ- →Every word from Proto-Germanic līką →Every word from Proto-West Germanic līk →