Where does “hình như” come from?

hình như (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese hình, from Chinese 型.

hình như (Vietnamese): seemingly, although not certainly

Definitions

  1. seemingly, although not certainly

Ancestry of “hình như”, step by step

hình như traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese hình

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesehìnhimage; a figure or a silhouette; a photo; a...
2Chinese型—

via Vietnamese như

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesenhưlike; as
2Middle Chinese如—
Every word from Chinese 型 →Every word from Vietnamese hình →
hình như — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer