Where does “user-friendly” come from?
user-friendly (English) comes from English friendly, from Middle English frendly, from Old English frēondlīċ, from Proto-Germanic frijōndlīkaz, from Proto-Germanic -līkaz, from Proto-Germanic līką, from Proto-Indo-European leyǵ- — to bind, tie.
user-friendly (English): Designed to be easy for an untrained user to use
Definitions
- Designed to be easy for an untrained user to use
Ancestry of “user-friendly”, step by step
user-friendly traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English friendly
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | friendly | Generally warm, approachable and easy to relate... |
| 2 | Middle English | frendly | Friendly, amicable; acting like a friend;... |
| 3 | Old English | frēondlīċ | friendly |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | frijōndlīkaz | friendlike; friendly |
| 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 |