English
sickly
Sickly comes from Middle English seekly.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500seekly
- Englishearliest quotation 1599sickly
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500seekly
- Englishearliest quotation 1599sickly
Earliest quotation: 1599, The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar: “Yes, bring me word, boy, if thy lord look…”
Formed from sick + -ly
Proto-Indo-European *sewg- ‘to be troubled or grieved’
Proto-Germanic *seukaz
Proto-West Germanic *seuk
Old English sēoc ‘sick’
Middle English sik ‘sick’
English sick
The story
Possibly a modification of Old English sīcle (‘sickly’) and/or derived from Old Norse sjúkligr (‘sickly’).
Every English word from Middle English seekly
Today it means
adj Frequently ill or in poor health; weakly.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English seekly / sickly