likeness

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Synonym Chooser

How is the word likeness distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of likeness are analogy, resemblance, similarity, and similitude. While all these words mean "agreement or correspondence in details," likeness implies a closer correspondence than similarity which often implies that things are merely somewhat alike.

a remarkable likeness to his late father
some similarity between the two cases

When is it sensible to use analogy instead of likeness?

In some situations, the words analogy and likeness are roughly equivalent. However, analogy implies likeness or parallelism in relations rather than in appearance or qualities.

pointed out analogies to past wars

When is resemblance a more appropriate choice than likeness?

The words resemblance and likeness are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, resemblance implies similarity chiefly in appearance or external qualities.

statements that bear little resemblance to the truth

When can similitude be used instead of likeness?

The meanings of similitude and likeness largely overlap; however, similitude applies chiefly to correspondence between abstractions.

two schools of social thought showing points of similitude

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of likeness This includes shooting some sequences with live actors, with plans to use face and pose transfer techniques with AI tools to preserve the likenesses of the original actors in the movie. Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025 The actors appear to have been chosen based on their likenesses alone. Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025 Topline Shoppers at online fast-fashion retailer Shein noticed a model this week that looked nearly identical to Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson, whose likeness was apparently used by a third-party seller to model a men’s button-down shirt. Conor Murray, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 According to the International Trademark Association, the right of publicity is an intellectual property right that protects against the misappropriation of a person’s likeness — such as the photo — for commercial benefit. Melina Khan, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for likeness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for likeness
Noun
  • At the event Nvidia speakers particularly focused on enterprise inference applications, where AI hopes to achieve its return on investment as pointed out in the slide image below.
    Thomas Coughlin, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
  • The comments came as New Zealand Police released images on Tuesday showing a campsite set up in Waitomo, which is believed to be where Phillips and his children had been staying before he was fatally shot.
    Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Creator @tinalemac shared her step-by-step process for transforming a plain IKEA mirror into a high-end replica using nothing more than tin foil and air-dry clay.
    Elizabeth Fogarty, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Acutis' tomb in Assisi—his body displayed in a wax replica and dressed in casual clothes and sneakers—has become a major pilgrimage site, and relics associated with him have toured internationally.
    Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • But two years later, a young woman bearing an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov is pulled shivering from a canal.
    Ashlee Conour, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
  • Some of these ancient microbes show strong resemblances to modern pathogens.
    Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The effect is far more visceral and connected to nature than a depiction of a typical landscape derived from observation, memory, or dreams.
    Natasha Gural, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Grant called out The Last Dance for its depiction of Jordan's teammates, specifically Chicago's other Hall of Famer during Grant's run, seven-time All-NBA small forward Scottie Pippen.
    Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Now, what’s wrong with that picture?
    Jamie McIntyre, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
  • There was a sharp spike in job cuts during August, new data shows, as employers shed staff due to a worsening economic picture.
    Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Evans is played by different actors at each stage of his life and thanks to the subtle similarities between them, the entire show flows smoothly.
    Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
  • The similarities might not have stuck out quite as much, but James Dyson’s words about copycats rang in my mind.
    Tyler Hayes, PC Magazine, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The seemingly unassuming coming-of-ager – a sunny portrait of happy high-school adolescence in Seoul – builds in complexity as a vision of livewire student’s Joo-in’s courage and resilience in the face of trauma, unknown and then misinterpreted by her equally young classmates.
    John Hopewell, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
  • The portrait museum has a dizzying array of galleries depicting everything from Old Hollywood to 17th-century Indigenous Americans.
    BrieAnna J. Frank, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The twins have increasingly relied on silhouettes that consist of a strip tube top or bandeau top, a tiny miniskirt, and a long, layered jacket, and once again, both brothers are doing the same thing.
    Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
  • Though Twinless is a movie all about twins, writer-director and star James Sweeney is not a twin himself.
    Barry Levitt, Time, 5 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Likeness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/likeness. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.

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