Where does “ladylike” come from?
Ladylike derives from English lady combined with the Old English suffix -līċ (resembling), which comes from Old English hlāf (loaf) via Proto-Germanic galīkaz (like) and Proto-Indo-European līg- (to lie).
ladylike (English): Of or related to the appearance or behaviour of a...
Definitions
- Of or related to the appearance or behaviour of a...
Ancestry of “ladylike”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | -like | Having some of the characteristics of |
| 2 | Middle English | -like | Alternative form of -liche |
| 3 | Middle English | -liche | Used to form adjectives from nouns, the... |
| 4 | Old English | -līc | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -līkaz | -like, -ly |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | līką | body; corpse, dead body; leech-line, bolt-rope |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | leyǵ- | to bind, tie |
Words derived from “ladylike”