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leidlich - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

From Middle High German līdelich (“patient, enduring”, later also “endurable”). Analysable as leiden (“to suffer”) +‎ -lich (“-ly, -able”); compare similar English sufferable.

There was also another adjective, Middle High German leitlich (“painful, sorrowful”), from Old High German leidlīh, which, at least in spelling, was merged with the above in early modern German and which might have influenced the meaning (though this seems not particularly likely). This latter adjective is cognate with Dutch lelijk (“ugly”), English loathly.

leidlich (strong nominative masculine singular leidlicher, not comparable)

  1. (dated) tolerable; passable; mediocre (only just good enough; not good, but not extremely bad either)
    Synonym: (sometimes more positive) passabel

    Er ist ein leidlicher Tennisspieler.

    He’s a mediocre tennis player.

Positive forms of leidlich (uncomparable)

leidlich

  1. (dated) tolerably; passably; halfway; more or less
    Synonyms: einigermaßen, halbwegs
  • “leidlich” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • “leidlich” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon