liked; liking
1
2
: to wish to have : want
would like a drink
3
: to do well in
this plant likes dry soil
my car does not like cold weather
4
: to electronically register one's approval of (something, such as an online post or comment) for others to see (as by clicking on an icon designed for that purpose)
[Brittany] Bunker then thanked the 477,000 people who had liked her post for their support …—
Natalie Cornish
Natalie CornishHow he picked out this seemingly random user and went ahead and liked the tweet is really surprising …—Zach Pereles
Zach Pereles5
chiefly dialectal
: to be suitable or agreeable to
I like onions but they don't like me
1
: liking, preference
2
: something that one likes
3
: the act or an instance of liking (see like entry 1 sense 4) an online comment, post, etc.
Her post got thousands of likes.
1
a
: the same or nearly the same (as in appearance, character, or quantity)
suits of like design
—formerly used with as, unto, ofit behoved him to be made like unto his brethren—Hebrews 2:17 (King James Version)
Hebrews 2:17 (King James Version)
b
chiefly British
: closely resembling the subject or original
the portrait is very like
2
: likely
the importance of statistics as the one discipline like to give accuracy of mind—H. J. Laski
H. J. Laski1
a
: having the characteristics of : similar to
his house is like a barn
it's like when we were kids
b
: typical of
was like him to do that
c
: comparable to : approximating
costs something like fifty cents
2
: in the manner of : similarly to
acts like a fool
3
: as though there would be
looks like rain
4
: such as
a subject like physics
5
—used to form intensive or ironic phrases
fought like hell
like fun he did
laughed like anything
1
a
: one that is similar : counterpart, equal
have … never seen the like before—Sir Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Churchill
b
: kind sense 1a
—usually used with a preceding possessive
put him and his like to some job—J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien2
: one of many that are similar to each other
—used chiefly in proverbial expressions
like breeds like
1
archaic
: equally
3
a
: to some extent : rather, altogether
saunter over nonchalantly like—Walter Karig
Walter Karig
b
—used interjectionally in informal speech often to emphasize a word or phrase (as in "He was, like, gorgeous") or for an apologetic, vague, or unassertive effect (as in "I need to, like, borrow some money")
4
: nearly, approximately
the actual interest is more like 18 percent
—used interjectionally in informal speech with expressions of measurementit was, like, five feet long
goes there every day, like
1
a
: as if
middle-aged men who looked like they might be out for their one night of the year—Norman Mailer
Norman Mailer
b
—used in intensive phrases
drove like mad
hurts like crazy
2
: in the same way that : as
they raven down scenery like children do sweetmeats—John Keats
John Keats3
a
: in the way or manner that
the violin sounds like an old masterpiece should
did it like you told me
b
—used interjectionally in informal speech often with the verb be to introduce a quotation, paraphrase, or thought expressed by or imputed to the subject of the verb, or with it's to report a generally held opinion
so I'm like, "Give me a break"
it's like, "Who cares what he thinks?"
4
: such as
a bag like a doctor carries
when your car has trouble—like when it won't start
—used interjectionally in informal speechoften stays up late, until like three in the morning
Like vs. as: Usage Guide
Like has been used as a conjunction in ways similar to as since the 14th century. In the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries it was used in serious literature, but not often; in the 17th and 18th centuries it grew more frequent but less literary. It became markedly more frequent in literary use again in the 19th century. By mid-century it was coming under critical fire, but not from grammarians, oddly enough, who were wrangling over whether it could be called a preposition or not. There is no doubt that, after 600 years of use, conjunctive like is firmly established. It has been used by many prestigious literary figures of the past, though perhaps not in their most elevated works; in modern use it may be found in literature, journalism, and scholarly writing. While the present objection to it is perhaps more heated than rational, someone writing in a formal prose style may well prefer to use as, as if, such as, or an entirely different construction instead.
variants
or liked
chiefly dialectal
: came near : was near
so loud I like to fell out of bed—Helen Eustis
Helen Eustis
: resembling or characteristic of
bell-like
ladylike
Phrases
and the like
the likes of
or less commonly the like of
1
: such people as : such things as
reads the likes of Austen and Browning
2
: such a one as and perhaps others similar to
—usually used with disparaging overtones
have no use for the likes of you
3
: the kind or sort of
a fantastic celebration the likes of which had never been seen before—Joseph Heller
Joseph Heller
: probably
Synonyms
Verb
Noun (1)
Adjective
- akin
- alike
- analogous
- cognate
- comparable
- connate
- correspondent
- corresponding
- ditto
- matching
- parallel
- resemblant
- resembling
- similar
- such
- suchlike
Noun (2)
- breed
- class
- description
- feather
- genre
- ilk
- kidney
- kind
- manner
- nature
- order
- sort
- species
- strain
- stripe
- type
- variety
Adverb
- enough
- fairly
- kind of
- kindly [chiefly Southern]
- moderately
- more or less
- pretty
- quite
- rather
- relatively
- something
- somewhat
- sort of
Conjunction
Examples of like in a Sentence
Verb
He likes baseball, but he loves football.
Do you like Mexican food?
I liked the movie a lot more than I thought I would.
I don't know what it is about that guy, but I just don't like him.
They were political allies who truly liked each other.
What is it that you like or dislike about him most?
She says she likes him as a friend but she's not attracted to him.
My boss was a tough guy, but I liked him for his honesty.
Adjective
you're not talking about like things when you compare football and golf
Preposition
The house looks like a barn.
It's like when we were kids.
She's not at all like her sister.
The baby is more like his mother than his father.
“Who is he like?” “He's not like anyone I've ever met before.”
Adverb
the cat would curl up, tightly like, and just go to sleep
the distance is more like 500 miles
Conjunction
it looks like it's going to rain at any moment
Recent Examples on the WebAllison Morrow, CNN, 5 Apr. 2024
Everyone’s journey to embracing their sexuality is different — and Chappell Roan would just like to wish everyone the best of luck in figuring it out.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 5 Apr. 2024
Conversely, players Kings fans did not like, such as Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski, and Burns, are no longer with the team.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
Data can’t really help here, but according to Bradbury, powerful people may just like sports.
—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
The video garnered more than 100 likes in three weeks.
—USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
Many liked to go to the annual kegger in the helicopter hangar or to gather at Gallagher’s, the station’s watering hole.
—David Kushner, WIRED, 4 Apr. 2024
For instance, brown rats like to hang out on or near the ground rather than in the trees or other high spots, where black rats often prefer to stay.
—CBS News, 4 Apr. 2024
No one likes dealing with lag, buffering, or app freezing.
—Dua Rashid / Gizmodo, Quartz, 24 Mar. 2024
Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2024
Others like Yas and OK are conversions from other types of vessels.
—Julia Zaltzman, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2024
For instance, the Education Department is proposing to automate loan forgiveness programs that are already in place, like the Public Student Loan Forgiveness plan and the process that forgives the remainder of undergraduate student loan balances after 20 years of payments.
—Bo Erickson, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2024
Information like legislative history or social-science data is largely irrelevant.
—Louis Menand, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
For example, if there’s a piece of content like the weighted average cost of capital, there are study components to help put that into greater context to hopefully increase students’ understanding.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2024
While Monday may be the first and only time some people see an eclipse, others, like Marian Garrigan, who traveled south to Carbondale, Ill., from Chicago, were excited for a second opportunity.
—Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024
When Trump Media finally went public late last month, experts immediately warned that Wall Street was drastically overvaluing the company based on traditional fundamental metrics like revenue and users.
—Matt Egan, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
In Hollywood, success and struggle go together like a horse and carriage.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 28 Mar. 2024
Jane Lanhee Lee / Bloomberg, TIME, 9 Apr. 2024
Raye has written for the likes of Beyoncé, including on Cowboy Carter.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Details in Chinese media reports include that Yellen ate at a storied restaurant in Guangzhou frequented by the likes of Chinese modernist writer Lu Xun.
—Lily Kuo, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
That includes titles by the likes of Charles Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edgar Allan Poe, and Arthur Conan Doyle.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 4 Apr. 2024
The agreement will allow both countries to work together to evaluate private AI models built by the likes of OpenAI and Google and was modeled on past collaboration on matters related to intelligence and security.
—John Kell, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
Held at Nashville's Belmont University, the red carpet gathering included an exclusive cocktail reception and country music concert attended by the likes of Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town and Jason Isbell.
—Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2024
The letter was also signed by the likes of legacy artists like R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Q-tip, Darius Rucker, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, and the estates of Frank Sinatra and Bob Marley.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Sha Battle is a native Georgian and multifaceted entrepreneur who has worked for the likes of Coca Cola, Exxon, and Price Waterhouse Coopers.
—Rayna Reid Rayford, Essence, 1 Apr. 2024
Michael Salerno, The Arizona Republic, 5 Apr. 2024
For a tiny hint of what that’s like, check out his speech when Yes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Jan. 2024
The face of the watch isn’t flush like on the Active models, however.
—Brandon Widder, The Verge, 16 Dec. 2023
Jeezy is opening up like never before in a new interview with Nia Long.
—Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 8 Nov. 2023
The trick to wearing glasses that take up half your face is to choose a pair that’s mostly clear—or even better with subtle colored lenses like at Etro or Missoni.
—Laia Garcia-Furtado, Vogue, 11 Oct. 2023
From his relationship with Amber Heard to quietly welcoming a third baby with Grimes, here are some of the most surprising revelations from the new book
Elon Musk is opening up like never before in a new biography that's creating headlines.
—David Chiu, Peoplemag, 12 Sep. 2023
On the back of each gift card, Best Buy warns customers to never use it for payment outside of Best Buy like for bills, bail or taxes.
—USA TODAY, 23 Aug. 2023
There will be a movie theater, upstairs like, sort of, restaurant area.
—Lisa Respers France, CNN, 3 July 2023
Verb
No one likes pausing Succession to respond to a 9pm request, but the guilt of ignoring it and wondering whether your boss will be mad at you is also, like, not fun.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 5 Apr. 2024
Everyone’s journey to embracing their sexuality is different — and Chappell Roan would just like to wish everyone the best of luck in figuring it out.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 5 Apr. 2024
Conversely, players Kings fans did not like, such as Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski, and Burns, are no longer with the team.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
Data can’t really help here, but according to Bradbury, powerful people may just like sports.
—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
The video garnered more than 100 likes in three weeks.
—USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
Many liked to go to the annual kegger in the helicopter hangar or to gather at Gallagher’s, the station’s watering hole.
—David Kushner, WIRED, 4 Apr. 2024
For instance, brown rats like to hang out on or near the ground rather than in the trees or other high spots, where black rats often prefer to stay.
—CBS News, 4 Apr. 2024
No one likes dealing with lag, buffering, or app freezing.
—Dua Rashid / Gizmodo, Quartz, 24 Mar. 2024
Preposition
And Schiller appeared in movies like Censor, Ashes in the Snow, Universal’s The Danish Girl, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Suffragette, Son of God, The Mercy, A Little Chaos, Good, Tolkein and HBO’s RKO 281.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2024
Others like Yas and OK are conversions from other types of vessels.
—Julia Zaltzman, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2024
For instance, the Education Department is proposing to automate loan forgiveness programs that are already in place, like the Public Student Loan Forgiveness plan and the process that forgives the remainder of undergraduate student loan balances after 20 years of payments.
—Bo Erickson, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2024
Information like legislative history or social-science data is largely irrelevant.
—Louis Menand, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
For example, if there’s a piece of content like the weighted average cost of capital, there are study components to help put that into greater context to hopefully increase students’ understanding.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2024
While Monday may be the first and only time some people see an eclipse, others, like Marian Garrigan, who traveled south to Carbondale, Ill., from Chicago, were excited for a second opportunity.
—Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024
When Trump Media finally went public late last month, experts immediately warned that Wall Street was drastically overvaluing the company based on traditional fundamental metrics like revenue and users.
—Matt Egan, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
In Hollywood, success and struggle go together like a horse and carriage.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 28 Mar. 2024
Noun
While many of history’s most successful startups—including the likes of Nvidia Corp.—were born in the U.S., the bulk of hardware innovation now centers on Asia.
—Jane Lanhee Lee / Bloomberg, TIME, 9 Apr. 2024
Raye has written for the likes of Beyoncé, including on Cowboy Carter.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Details in Chinese media reports include that Yellen ate at a storied restaurant in Guangzhou frequented by the likes of Chinese modernist writer Lu Xun.
—Lily Kuo, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
That includes titles by the likes of Charles Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edgar Allan Poe, and Arthur Conan Doyle.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 4 Apr. 2024
The agreement will allow both countries to work together to evaluate private AI models built by the likes of OpenAI and Google and was modeled on past collaboration on matters related to intelligence and security.
—John Kell, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
Held at Nashville's Belmont University, the red carpet gathering included an exclusive cocktail reception and country music concert attended by the likes of Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town and Jason Isbell.
—Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2024
The letter was also signed by the likes of legacy artists like R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Q-tip, Darius Rucker, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, and the estates of Frank Sinatra and Bob Marley.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Sha Battle is a native Georgian and multifaceted entrepreneur who has worked for the likes of Coca Cola, Exxon, and Price Waterhouse Coopers.
—Rayna Reid Rayford, Essence, 1 Apr. 2024
Adverb
What was traffic like on In-N-Out's first day in Flagstaff?
As of 11:30 a.m., the drive-thru line was an hour and a half long, according to a security and traffic control worker at In-N-Out.
—Michael Salerno, The Arizona Republic, 5 Apr. 2024
For a tiny hint of what that’s like, check out his speech when Yes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Jan. 2024
The face of the watch isn’t flush like on the Active models, however.
—Brandon Widder, The Verge, 16 Dec. 2023
Jeezy is opening up like never before in a new interview with Nia Long.
—Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 8 Nov. 2023
The trick to wearing glasses that take up half your face is to choose a pair that’s mostly clear—or even better with subtle colored lenses like at Etro or Missoni.
—Laia Garcia-Furtado, Vogue, 11 Oct. 2023
From his relationship with Amber Heard to quietly welcoming a third baby with Grimes, here are some of the most surprising revelations from the new book
Elon Musk is opening up like never before in a new biography that's creating headlines.
—David Chiu, Peoplemag, 12 Sep. 2023
On the back of each gift card, Best Buy warns customers to never use it for payment outside of Best Buy like for bills, bail or taxes.
—USA TODAY, 23 Aug. 2023
There will be a movie theater, upstairs like, sort of, restaurant area.
—Lisa Respers France, CNN, 3 July 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'like.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun (1)
Middle English, from Old English līcian; akin to Old English gelīc alike
Adjective
Middle English, alteration of ilich, from Old English gelīc like, alike, from ge-, associative prefix + līc body; akin to Old High German gilīh like, alike, Lithuanian lygus like — more at co-
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 5
Noun (1)
1612, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b
Preposition
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun (2)
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b
Adverb
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Conjunction
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Auxiliary Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of like was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing like
Dictionary Entries Near like
Cite this Entry
“Like.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/like. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
like
1 of 9 verb
liked; liking
1
: to have a liking for : enjoy
likes baseball
2
: to feel toward : regard
how do you like this weather?
3
: to wish to have : want
would like a drink
4
: to feel inclined : choose
you can leave any time you like
5
: to indicate approval of (as an online post) for others to see (as by clicking on an icon designed for that purpose)
like
2 of 9 noun1
: liking, preference
my likes and dislikes
2
: an instance of liking an online post
like
3 of 9 adjective
: being the same or very nearly the same
two like magnetic poles
suits of like design
like
4 of 9 preposition1
a
: similar to
the house looks like a barn
b
: typical of
it would be just like you to do that
2
: similarly to
acting like a fool
blow it up like a balloon
3
: likely to
looks like rain
4
: such as
a subject like physics
like
5 of 9 noun
: equal entry 2 sense 1
may never see its like again
like
6 of 9 adverb1
: likely entry 2, probably
like as not the cat's under the porch
3
: close to : within a little : nearer
the rate is more like 18 percent
like
8 of 9 helping verb
variants
or liked
chiefly dialect
: came near : was near
I like to have died laughing
-like
9 of 9 adjective combining formˌlīk
: resembling or characteristic of
bell-like
ladylike
Etymology
Verb
Old English līcian "to take pleasure in"
Adjective
Old English gelīc "alike"
More from Merriam-Webster on like
Nglish: Translation of like for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of like for Arabic Speakers
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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