Evenliche

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Archaic adverb meaning in a level, uniform, or equal manner, as things are arranged or distributed evenly
2. Old English-style adverb describing something done fairly, evenly, or in equal measure without favoring one side
3. Middle English term for acting or arranged in a balanced, smooth, or equal way across all parts

Etymology: Before it meant anything about fairness, "even" described a flat, level surface. Its Old English ancestor, "efen," meant smooth or level, and from there it came to mean equal, matched, and balanced. Middle English speakers built the adverb "evenliche" by adding the suffix "-liche" to this adjective, so the sense was "in a level, equal manner." That suffix is the more surprising part. The Old English "-lic" was itself built from "lic," meaning body or form, which is the same root that gives us "like" in its older sense of "resembling." So "evenliche" carries a trace of the idea of having the same shape. The modern "evenly" keeps the same structure, with the Middle English "-e" ending dropped as the language lost its inflections.