líkamleg

Líkamleg is an Icelandic adjective meaning "bodily" or "physical." It describes aspects related to the body, as opposed to the mind or emotions, and is used in medical, educational, sporting, and everyday language to indicate a bodily rather than a mental or spiritual dimension.

Etymology and grammar: Líkamleg derives from líkami, meaning "body," with the adjectival suffix -leg/ -legur. Like other Icelandic adjectives, líkamlegur inflects for gender and number, and the adverbial form is líkamlega. The neuter singular form is líkamlegt, used with neuter nouns such as líkamlegt ástand (physical condition).

Common uses and examples: The term appears in phrases that spacify bodily aspects, for example, líkamleg heilsa (physical health), líkamleg þreyta (physical fatigue), líkamleg virkni (bodily function), and líkamlegar þarfir (bodily needs). It is also used to describe conditions, symptoms, or activities that involve the body, such as líkamlegt áreynsluverk (physical exertion) or líkamlegt eðli athafnar (the bodily nature of an activity). In medical contexts, líkamlegur sjúkdómur might be used to distinguish a bodily illness from other types of health concerns.

See also and related terms: The word is part of a broader spectrum of terms referring to the body in Icelandic, and is often paired with terms that denote non-bodily aspects in contrast, such as words for mental or cognitive dimensions, depending on the context. The form líkamlega is used to modify verbs and adjectives, translating roughly to “physically” in English and enabling precise descriptions of how something relates to the body.