Where does “unlike” come from?

Unlike derives from Middle English unlic, from Old English unlīċ meaning "not alike," from Proto-Germanic ungalīkaz, combining the negation prefix un- with a root from Proto-Indo-European ne and līg-.

unlike (English): Not like; dissimilar (to); having no resemblance; unalike

Definitions

  1. Not like; dissimilar (to); having no resemblance; unalike

Ancestry of “unlike”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishunlic—
2Old Englishunlīċ—
3Proto-Germanicungalīkazdissimilar, different, unlike
4Proto-Germanicun-not, un-
5Proto-Indo-Europeann̥-not, un-
6Proto-Indo-Europeannenot

Words derived from “unlike”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ne →