Felynge

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic term for the sense of touch or the sensation experienced through the body, as in perceiving something by physical contact
2. A Middle English spelling referring to the perception of something through touch, or the inner sense that registers emotion or physical contact
3. Old-fashioned word for the act or result of sensing something physically, especially by touching it or being touched

Etymology: Before it meant an emotion, the root of this spelling meant touch. Old English "felan" meant to touch or perceive by hand, and the sense of inner emotion grew out of that physical sense over the following centuries. "Felynge" is a Middle English spelling of the noun, formed from the verb "felen" (to feel) plus the suffix "-ing," which turns a verb into a noun for an action or its result. Medieval writers used it for the act of perceiving through the senses, and for the sensation itself. The modern spelling "feeling" took over as English spelling settled, so "felynge" now appears mainly in older texts.