A liking is a taste or fondness for something. Take a liking to him, a liking for sweet things, not to my liking.
It is milder than love and steadier than a whim, and it appears mostly in three fixed phrases: take a liking to, a liking for, and to your liking. Note that to your liking means suited to your taste rather than approved of.
1nounlikingA taste or fondness for something.
“The old dog took a liking to our new neighbour and followed him everywhere.”
liking is a fondness.
Old English liciende is the participle of lician, to please. Like first meant to please rather than to enjoy.
Proto-Germanic
*līkāndz
Old English
līciende
Middle English
likinge
English, today
liking
From Middle English likinge, likinde, likende, likande, licande, from Old English līciende, līciġende, from Proto-Germanic līkāndz, present participle of Proto-Germanic līkāną, equivalent to like + ing.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA