Comparisons Like is one of the words in the English language that can introduce a
simile (a
stylistic device comparing two dissimilar ideas). It can be used as a
preposition, as in "He runs
like a cheetah"; it can also be used as a
suffix, as in "She acts very child-
like. It can also be used in non-simile comparisons such as, "She has a dog
like ours".
As a conjunction Like is often used in place of the
subordinating conjunction as, or
as if. Examples: • They look
like they have been having fun. • They look
as if they have been having fun. Many people became aware of the two options in 1954, when a famous ad campaign for Winston cigarettes introduced the slogan "
Winston tastes good—like a cigarette should." The slogan was criticized for its usage by
prescriptivists, the "as" construction being considered more proper. Winston countered with another ad, featuring a woman with greying hair in a bun who insists that ought to be "Winston tastes good
as a cigarette should" and is shouted down by happy cigarette smokers asking "What do you want—good grammar or good taste?" The appropriateness of its usage as a conjunction is still
disputed, however. In some circles, it is considered an error to use
like instead of
as or
as if in formal prose.
As a noun Like can be used as a
noun meaning "preference" or "kind". Examples: • She had many likes and dislikes. • We'll never see the like again. When used specifically on
social media, it can refer to interactions with content posted by a user, commonly referred to as "likes" on websites such as
Twitter or
Instagram. • That picture you posted got a lot of likes!
As a verb As a
verb,
like generally refers to a fondness for something or someone. Example: • Marc
likes Denise. • I've taken a
liking to our new neighbors.
Like can also be used to indicate a wish for something in a polite manner. • He was like, "I'll be there in five minutes." • She was like, "You need to leave the room right now!"
Like can also be used to paraphrase an implicitly unspoken idea or sentiment: • I was like, "Who do they think they are?" The marking of
past tense is often omitted (compare
historical present): • They told me all sorts of terrible things, and I'm like "Forget it then." It is also sometimes used to introduce non-verbal mimetic performances, e.g., facial expressions, hand gestures, body movement, as well as sounds and noises: • I was like [speaker rolls eyes]. • The car was like, "vroom!" The use of
like as a quotative is known to have been around since at least the 1980s.
As a discourse particle Like can be used in much the same way as "um..." or "er..." as a
discourse particle. It has become common especially among North American teenagers to use the word "like" in this way, as in
Valspeak. For example: • I, like, don't know what to do. It is also becoming more often used (East Coast
Scottish English,
Northern England English,
Hiberno-English and
Welsh English in particular) at the end of a sentence, as an alternative to
you know. This usage is sometimes considered to be a colloquial
interjection and it implies a desire to remain calm and defuse tension: • I didn't say anything, like. • Just be cool, like. It is traditionally, though not quite every time, used to finish a sentence in the Northern English dialect
Geordie. Use of
like as a
filler has a long history in Scots English, as in
Robert Louis Stevenson's 1886 novel
Kidnapped: "What'll like be your business, mannie?" "What's like wrong with him?" said she at last.
As a hedge Like can be used as
hedge to indicate that the following phrase will be an approximation or exaggeration, or that the following words may not be quite right, but are close enough. It may indicate that the phrase in which it appears is to be taken metaphorically or as a
hyperbole. This use of
like is sometimes regarded as
adverbial, as
like is often
synonymous here with adverbial phrases of approximation, such as "almost" or "more or less". Examples: • I have like no money left. • The restaurant is only like five miles from here. • I like almost died! Conversely,
like may also be used to indicate a counterexpectation to the speaker, or to indicate certainty regarding the following phrase. Examples: • There was like a living kitten in the box! • This is like the only way to solve the problem. • I like know what I'm doing, okay? Very early use of this locution can be seen in a New Yorker cartoon of 15 September 1928, in which two young ladies are discussing a man's workplace: "What's he got – an awfice?" "No, he's got like a loft." It is also used in the 1962 novel
A Clockwork Orange by the narrator as part of his teenage slang and in the
Top Cat cartoon series from 1961 to 1962 by the jazz beatnik type characters. == History ==