different between know vs like

English

Alternative forms

• knowe (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English knowen, from Old English cn?wan (“to know, perceive, recognise”), from Proto-West Germanic *kn?an, from Proto-Germanic *kn?an? (“to know”), from Proto-Indo-European *?neh?- (“to know”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /n??/
• (US) enPR: n?, IPA^(key): /no?/
• ('to know')
• Rhymes: -??
• Homophones: no, noh

Verb

know (third-person singular simple present knows, present participle knowing, simple past knew, past participle known or (colloquial and nonstandard) knew)

1. (transitive) To perceive the truth or factuality of; to be certain of or that.
   • 1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, p. 35:

     ‘I know whether a boy is telling me the truth or not.’
     ‘Thank you, sir.’
     Did he hell. They never bloody did.

2. (transitive) To be aware of; to be cognizant of.
3. (transitive) To be acquainted or familiar with; to have encountered.
   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Marsha is my roommate. — I know Marsha. She is nice.

4. (transitive) To experience.
   • 1991, Irvin Haas, Historic Homes of the American Presidents, p.155:

     The Truman family knew good times and bad, […].

5. (transitive) To be able to distinguish, to discern, particularly by contrast or comparison; to recognize the nature of.
   • The Bat—they called him the Bat. […]. He'd never been in stir, the bulls had never mugged him, he didn't run with a mob, he played a lone hand, and fenced his stuff so that even the fence couldn't swear he knew his face.

   • 1980, Armored and mechanized brigade operations, p.3?29:

     Flares do not know friend from foe and so illuminate both. Changes in wind direction can result in flare exposure of the attacker while defenders hide in the shadows.

6. (transitive) To recognize as the same (as someone or something previously encountered) after an absence or change.
   • c. 1645–1688, Thomas Flatman, Translation of Part of Petronius Arbiter's Satyricon

     At nearer view he thought he knew the dead, / And call'd the wretched man to mind.

   • 1818, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein:

     Ernest also is so much improved, that you would hardly know him: […].

7. To understand or have a grasp of through experience or study.
8. (transitive, archaic, biblical) To have sexual relations with. This meaning normally specified in modern English as e.g. to ’know someone in the biblical sense’ or to ‘know Biblically.’
   • 1939, Dorothy Parker, "Horsie," Here lies: The collected stories of Dorothy Parker:

     Now Gerald had never thought of her having a mother. Then there must have been a father, too, some time. And Miss Wilmarth existed because two people once had loved and known. It was not a thought to dwell upon.

9. (intransitive) To have knowledge; to have information, be informed.

   • “My Continental prominence is improving,” I commented dryly. ¶ Von Lindowe cut at a furze bush with his silver-mounted rattan. ¶ “Quite so,” he said as dryly, his hand at his mustache. “I may say if your intentions were known your life would not be worth a curse.”

   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Marsha knows.

10. (intransitive) To be or become aware or cognizant.
    • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling

      “A gentleman!” quoth the squire, “who the devil can he be? Do, doctor, go down and see who ‘tis. Mr Blifil can hardly be come to town yet.—Go down, do, and know what his business is.”

11. (intransitive, obsolete) To be acquainted (with another person).
    • 1607, William Shakespeare, Antony and Cleopatra, act 2, scene 6:

      You and I have known, sir.

12. (transitive) To be able to play or perform (a song or other piece of music).

Usage notes

• “Knowen” is found in some old texts as the past participle.
• In some old texts, the form “know to [verb]” rather than “know how to [verb]” is found, e.g. Milton wrote: “he knew himself to sing, and build the lofty rhymes”.

Conjugation

Quotations

• 1599, William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, scene 1:

  O, that a man might know / The end of this day's business ere it come! / But it sufficeth that the day will end, / And then the end is known.

• 1839, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Light of Stars, Voices of the Night:

  O fear not in a world like this, / And thou shalt know erelong, / Know how sublime a thing it is, / To suffer and be strong.

Synonyms

• (have sexual relations with): coitize, go to bed with, sleep with; see also Thesaurus:copulate with

Hyponyms

• grok

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

know (plural knows)

1. (rare) Knowledge; the state of knowing.
   • 1623, William Shakespeare, Hamlet (1623 first folio edition), act 5, scene 2:

     That on the view and know of these Contents, […] He should the bearers put to […] death,

Derived terms

• in the know

References

• know in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• know in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• Kwon, wonk

Cornish

Etymology

From Proto-Brythonic *know, from Proto-Celtic *kn?s.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kno?]

Noun

know pl (singulative knowen or knofen)

1. nuts

Mutation

Derived terms

• know dor (“peanuts”)
• know Frynk (“walnuts”)
• know koko (“coconuts”)
• know koll (“hazelnuts”)
• know muskat (“nutmeg”)
• know toos (“doughnuts”)
• plisk know (“nutshells”)

Middle English

Noun

know

1. Alternative form of kne

English

Alternative forms

• lak

Pronunciation

• enPR: l?k, IPA^(key): /la?k/
• Rhymes: -a?k

Etymology 1

Verb from Middle English liken, from Old English l?cian (“to please; be sufficient”), from Proto-West Germanic *l?k?n, from Proto-Germanic *l?k?n? (“to please”), from Proto-Indo-European *leyg- (“image; likeness; similarity”).

Cognate with Saterland Frisian liekje (“to be similar, resemble”), Dutch lijken (“to seem”), German Low German lieken (“to be like; resemble”), German gleichen (“to resemble”), Swedish lika (“to like; put up with; align with”), Norwegian like (“to like”), Icelandic líka (“to like”).

Noun from Middle English like (“pleasure, will, like”), from the verb Middle English liken (“to like”).

Verb

like (third-person singular simple present likes, present participle liking, simple past and past participle liked)

1. To enjoy, be pleased by; favor; be in favor of.

   Antonyms: dislike, hate, mislike

   • He may either go or stay, as he best likes.
2. (transitive, archaic) To please.
3. (obsolete) To derive pleasure of, by or with someone or something.
4. To prefer and maintain (an action) as a regular habit or activity.

5. (obsolete) To have an appearance or expression; to look; to seem to be (in a specified condition).
6. (archaic) To come near; to avoid with difficulty; to escape narrowly.
7. To find attractive; to prefer the company of; to have mild romantic feelings for.

   Synonyms: (British) fancy, enjoy, love

   Antonyms: dislike, hate, mislike
8. (obsolete) To liken; to compare.
9. (Internet, transitive) To show support for, or approval of, something posted on the Internet by marking it with a vote.

   Antonyms: unlike, dislike

10. (with 'would' and in certain other phrases) To want, desire. See also would like.

Usage notes

• In its senses of “enjoy” and “maintain as a regular habit”, like is a catenative verb; in the former, it usually takes a gerund (-ing form), while in the latter, it takes a to-infinitive. See also Appendix:English catenative verbs.
• Like is only used to mean “want” in certain expressions, such as “if you like” and “I would like”. The conditional form, would like, is used quite freely as a polite synonym for want.

Conjugation

Derived terms

Related terms

• like like
• would like

Translations

Noun

like (plural likes)

1. (usually in the plural) Something that a person likes (prefers).

   Synonyms: favorite, preference

   Antonyms: dislike, pet hate, pet peeve

2. (Internet) An individual vote showing support for, or approval of, something posted on the Internet.

Translations

References

• like on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Etymology 2

Adjective from Middle English like, lyke, from Old English ?el?? by shortening, influenced by Old Norse líkr, glíkr; both from Proto-Germanic *gal?kaz (“like, similar, same”). Related to alike; more distantly, with lich and -ly. Cognate with West Frisian like (“like; as”), Saterland Frisian gliek (“like”), Danish lig (“alike”), Dutch gelijk (“like, alike”), German gleich (“equal, like”), Icelandic líkur (“alike, like, similar”), Norwegian lik (“like, alike”) Swedish lik (“like, similar”)

Adverb from Middle English like, lyke, liche, lyche, from Old English ?el??e (“likewise, also, as, in like manner, similarly”) and Old Norse líka (“also, likewise”); both from Proto-Germanic *gal?kê, from Proto-Germanic *gal?kaz (“same, like, similar”).

Conjunction from Middle English like, lyke, lik, lyk, from the adverb Middle English like.

Preposition from Middle English like, lyke, liche, lyche, lijc, liih (“similar to, like, equal to, comparable with”), from Middle English like (adjective) and like (adverb).

Adjective

like (comparative more like, superlative most like)

1. Similar.
   • 1843, Thomas Carlyle, Past and Present, book 2, ch. 3, Landlord Edmund

     […] and this is not a sky, it is a Soul and living Face! Nothing liker the Temple of the Highest, bright with some real effulgence of the Highest, is seen in this world.
2. (obsolete) Likely; probable.
   • 1668, Robert South, The Messiah's Sufferings for the Sins of the People (sermon, March 20, 1668)

     But it is like the jolly world about us will scoff at the paradox of these practices.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

• as like as not

Translations

Adverb

like (comparative more like, superlative most like)

1. (obsolete, colloquial) Likely.
   • 1599, William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2 Scene 3

     DON PEDRO. May be she doth but counterfeit.

     CLAUDIO. Faith, like enough. [= Indeed, quite likely.]

2. (archaic or rare) In a like or similar manner.

   • Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

Noun

like (countable and uncountable, plural likes)

2. (sometimes as the likes of) Someone similar to a given person, or something similar to a given object; a comparative; a type; a sort.
   • 1935, Winston Churchill on T.E. Lawrence

     We shall never see his like again.

3. (golf) The stroke that equalizes the number of strokes played by the opposing player or side.

Synonyms

• ilk

Antonyms

• antithesis, opposite

Derived terms

• like-for-like

Translations

Conjunction

like

1. (colloquial) As, the way.
   • 1966, Advertising slogan for Winston cigarettes

     Winston tastes good like a cigarette should

   • 1978, "Do Unto Others" by Bob Dylan

     But if you do right to me, baby

     I’ll do right to you, too

     Ya got to do unto others

     Like you’d have them, like you’d have them, do unto you

2. As if; as though.

Usage notes

• The American Heritage Dictionary opines that using like as a conjunction, instead of as, the way, as if, or as though, is informal; it has, however, been routine since the Middle English period. AHD4 says "Writers since Chaucer's time have used like as a conjunction, but 19th-century and 20th-century critics have been so vehement in their condemnations of this usage that a writer who uses the construction in formal style risks being accused of illiteracy or worse", and recommends using as in formal speech and writing. OED does not tag it as colloquial or nonstandard, but notes, "Used as conj[unction]: = 'like as', as. Now generally condemned as vulgar or slovenly, though examples may be found in many recent writers of standing."

Derived terms

• feel like, look like, seem like, sound like

Preposition

like

1. Similar to, reminiscent of.
2. Typical of

   It would be just like Achilles to be sulking in his tent.

3. Approximating

   Popcorn costs something like $10 dollars at the movies.

4. In the manner of, similarly to.

   He doesn't act like a president.

5. Such as

   It's for websites like Wikipedia.

6. As if there would be.

   It looks like a hot summer in Europe.

Synonyms

• (such as): for example, such as, (archaic) as

Antonyms

• unlike

Derived terms

• like a bull at a gate

Translations

Particle

like

1. (colloquial, Scotland, Ireland, Tyneside, Teesside, Liverpudlian) A delayed filler.

2. (colloquial) A mild intensifier.
   • 1972, Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts, December 1:

     [Sally Brown:] Christmas is getting all you can get while the getting is good.
     [Charlie Brown:] GIVING! The only real joy is GIVING!
     [Sally Brown, rolling her eyes:] Like, wow!

3. (colloquial) indicating approximation or uncertainty

4. (colloquial, slang) When preceded by any form of the verb to be, used to mean “to say” or “to think”; used to precede an approximate quotation or paraphrase.
   • 2006, Lily Allen, Knock 'Em Out

     You're just doing your own thing and some one comes out the blue,

     They're like, "Alright"

     What ya saying, "Yeah can I take your digits?"

     And you're like, "no not in a million years, you're nasty please leave me alone."

Synonyms

• (delayed filler): I mean, you know
• (mild intensifier): I mean, well, you know
• (indicating approximation or uncertainty): I mean, well, you know
• (colloquial: used to precede paraphrased quotations): be all, go

Usage notes

The use as a quotative is informal. It is commonly used by young people, and commonly disliked by older generations, especially in repeated use. It may be combined with the use of the present tense as a narrative. Similar terms are to go and all, as in I go, “Why did you do that?” and he goes, “I don't know” and I was all, “Why did you do that?” and he was all, “I don't know.” These expressions can imply that the attributed remark which follows is representative rather than necessarily an exact quotation; however, in speech these structures do tend to require mimicking the original speaker's inflection in a way said would not.

Excessive use of "like" as a meaningless filler is widely criticised.

Translations

Interjection

like

1. (Liverpudlian, Tyneside) Used to place emphasis upon a statement.

Etymology 3

From like (adverb) and like (adjective).

Verb

like (third-person singular simple present likes, present participle liking, simple past and past participle liked)

1. (chiefly dialectal, intransitive) To be likely.

References

• A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Bill Griffiths, 2005, Northumbria University Press, ?ISBN
• like at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• Kiel, Kile, kile, liek

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from English like.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [l?j??]

Noun

like n (singular definite liket, plural indefinite likes)

1. (Internet) like

Verb

like (imperative like, infinitive at like, present tense liker, past tense likede, perfect tense har liket)

1. (Internet) like

French

Pronunciation

• Homophones: likent, likes

Verb

like

1. first-person singular present indicative of liker
2. third-person singular present indicative of liker
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of liker
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of liker
5. second-person singular imperative of liker

German

Verb

like

1. inflection of liken:
   1. first-person singular present
   2. first/third-person singular subjunctive I
   3. singular imperative

Hawaiian

Etymology

From Proto-Eastern Polynesian *lite. Compare Maori rite.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?li.ke/, [?like]

Verb

like

1. (stative) like, alike, similar

Derived terms

• ho?olike: to make things equal, to make things similar (less common)
• ho?oh?like: to make things equal, to make things similar (more common)

References

• “like” in the Hawaiian Dictionary, Revised and Enlarged Edition, University of Hawaii Press, 1986

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From Old Norse líka

Verb

like (imperative lik, present tense liker, simple past likte, past participle likt)

1. to like

Etymology 2

Adjective

like

1. definite singular of lik
2. plural of lik

Etymology 3

Adverb

like

1. as, equally

Derived terms

• likefullt, like fullt
• likeledes
• likeså

References

• “like” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²li?k?/

Etymology 1

From Old Norse líka

Alternative forms

• lika

Verb

like (imperative lik or like, present tense likar or liker, simple past lika or likte, past participle lika or likt)

1. to like

Etymology 2

Adjective

like

1. definite singular of lik
2. plural of lik

Etymology 3

From Old Norse líka

Adverb

like

1. as, equally

2. just, immediately

References

• “like” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Scots

Etymology

From Old English l?cian (“to be pleasing”)

Verb

like (third-person singular present likes, present participle likin, past likit, past participle likit)

1. To like.
2. To be hesitant to do something.

3. To love somebody or something.

Adverb

like (not comparable)

1. like

Interjection

like

1. (South Scots) Used to place emphasis upon a statement.

Spanish

Etymology

From English like.

Noun

like m (plural likes)

1. (Internet slang) like

Swedish

Adjective

like

1. absolute definite natural masculine form of lik.

Noun

like c

1. match (someone similarly skillful)

Declension