Etymology Explorer › English

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

  1. Designed to be easy for an untrained user to use

Ancestry of “user-friendly”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfriendlyGenerally warm, approachable and easy to relate...
2Middle EnglishfrendlyFriendly, amicable; acting like a friend;...
3Old Englishfrēondlīċ—
4Proto-Germanicfrijōndlīkazfriendlike; friendly
5Proto-Germanic-līkaz-like, -ly
6Proto-Germaniclīkąbody; corpse, dead body; leech-line, bolt-rope
7Proto-Indo-Europeanleyǵ-to bind, tie

Words derived from “user-friendly”

  • user-friendliness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leyǵ- →