7like conjunction
informal 1 a : the way it would be if
▪ The plane looked like [=as if] it would crash. ▪ It seemed like [=as if] he'd never been away.
b : the way someone would do if
▪ She acts like [=as if] she's better than us. 2 : the same as : as
▪ You sound just like [=the way] he does. ▪ Does it look like [=the way, as] it did when you began? ▪ Does it look now like (it did) before? [=does it look now as it did before?] ▪ Real life is not like [=as, the way] it is in the movies. ▪ Real life isn't at all like [=the way] the movies are. ▪ Like I said [=as I said] before, you've got to try harder. 3 : in the way or manner that
▪ I did it like [=the way, just as] you told me. 4 : such as
▪ a bag like a doctor carries [=a bag like the kind of bag that a doctor carries] ▪ The book tells you what to do when your car has trouble—like when it won't start. [=as, for example, when it won't start]
▪ The plane looked like [=as if] it would crash. ▪ It seemed like [=as if] he'd never been away.
b : the way someone would do if
▪ She acts like [=as if] she's better than us.
▪ You sound just like [=the way] he does. ▪ Does it look like [=the way, as] it did when you began? ▪ Does it look now like (it did) before? [=does it look now as it did before?] ▪ Real life is not like [=as, the way] it is in the movies. ▪ Real life isn't at all like [=the way] the movies are. ▪ Like I said [=as I said] before, you've got to try harder.
▪ I did it like [=the way, just as] you told me.
▪ a bag like a doctor carries [=a bag like the kind of bag that a doctor carries] ▪ The book tells you what to do when your car has trouble—like when it won't start. [=as, for example, when it won't start]
usage The use of like as a conjunction is regarded by some people as an error. It occurs mainly in speech and informal writing.
