lécher

From Middle French lecher, from Old French lechier, from a Vulgar Latin *liccāre (compare Italian leccare), itself probably from Frankish *likkōn. See English lick for more. Alternatively from an early contraction of *ligicāre, denasalized from *lingicāre, from Classical Latin lingere. This is based on the analogy with *fīccāre (whence French ficher), generally derived from *fīgicāre, from fīgere. However, the last-mentioned etymology (while commonly accepted) is not inevitable and at any rate requires only two theoretical steps, rather than three.