Similar in different languages

Similar in Different Languages

Discover 'Similar' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.

Updated on March 6, 2024

The word 'similar' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, allowing us to identify and describe things that share common characteristics or traits. Its cultural importance is undeniable, as it forms the foundation of how we categorize and understand the world around us. From a young age, we learn to group objects based on their similarities, making it a fundamental concept in education and communication.

Moreover, the ability to recognize similarities between different things is not just a human trait, but also a survival mechanism present in many animals. This shared characteristic highlights the interconnectedness of life and the universality of this concept.

For those interested in language and culture, understanding the translation of 'similar' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how different cultures perceive and categorize the world. Here are a few examples:

  • Spanish: similar
  • French: semblable
  • German: ähnlich
  • Mandarin: 相似 (xiāng sì)
  • Japanese: 似ている (nit suite iru)

Similar


Similar in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaanssoortgelyk
The Afrikaans word "soortgelyk" is derived from the Dutch word "soortgelijk", which also means "similar", and is composed of the elements "soort" ("type, kind") and "gelijk" ("equal, like").
Amharicተመሳሳይ
The word 'ተመሳሳይ' is derived from the root 'መሰል' (to resemble), and is also used to describe something that is 'equal' or 'equivalent'.
Hausakama
Hausa word **kama** is also used to express the idea of 'as if'.
Igboyiri
Yiri, meaning 'similar', derives from the verb 'ri' ('to do').
Malagasysimilar
"mitovy" is an alternative word with the same meaning, but is found in a smaller variety of grammatical situations.
Nyanja (Chichewa)ofanana
Oifanana, or ofanana, may also be used to express closeness in time.
Shonazvakafanana
The word "zvakafanana" is also used to describe the similarity of two objects or situations that are analogous, or have comparable properties.
Somalila mid ah
The word ''la mid ah'' can also refer to a mirror image or reflection.
Sesothotšoanang
“Tšoanang” can also mean “exactly like” (the original) in addition to meaning “similar.”
Swahilisawa
As a noun, "sawa" additionally means "agreement"}
Xhosangokufanayo
Xhosa has several words for things that are similar; "ngokufanayo" is one, and it can also mean "in the same way."
Yorubairu
The word 'iru' also means 'likeness' and 'image' in Yoruba.
Zuluokufanayo
Okufanayo in Zulu can also mean 'the same' or 'alike'.
Bambaraɲɔgɔn
Ewesᴐ
Kinyarwandabisa
Lingalandenge moko
Lugandaokwefaananyiriza
Sepediswanago
Twi (Akan)

Similar in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicمماثل
In geology, the term 'similar' refers to 'parallel' geological features.
Hebrewדוֹמֶה
The root of the Hebrew word "דוֹמֶה" ("similar") is "דמה" ("blood"), possibly referring to the shared genetic makeup of similar individuals.
Pashtoورته
The word "ورته" in Pashto can also mean "such", "like", or "as" and is related to the word "ورتو" which means "this kind".
Arabicمماثل
In geology, the term 'similar' refers to 'parallel' geological features.

Similar in Western European Languages

Albaniani ngjashëm
The Albanian word "i ngjashëm" comes from the Proto-Albanian word "*ng-shem", which also means "likeness" or "resemblance".
Basqueantzekoa
The Basque term "antzekoa" can be traced back to the root "antza," meaning "appearance" or "likeness."
Catalansimilar
Simil comes from the Latin simile, meaning "to compare (to)" or "to imitate".
Croatiansličan
The word "sličan" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *sъlьnъ, meaning "beautiful" or "handsome".
Danishlignende
The word "lignende" in Danish can also mean "likeness" or "resemblance".
Dutchvergelijkbaar
The Dutch word "vergelijkbaar" comes from the verbs "ver- ("to compare") and "gelijken" ("to resemble").
Englishsimilar
The word "similar" comes from the Latin word "similis," which means "like" or "resembling."
Frenchsimilaire
"Similaire" is also a French word meaning "macaque" or "monkey."
Frisianferlykber
The word "ferlykber" also means "much" or "great" in the Frisian language.
Galiciansemellante
In Galician, “semellante” also means “imitation” or “copy”.
Germanähnlich
"Ähnlich" comes from the Old High German word "analih", meaning "equal" or "alike".
Icelandicsvipað
The word "svipað" derives from the Old Norse word "svipr", meaning "appearance, likeness".
Irishcosúil leis
Cosúil leis can also mean 'seem, appear', which can give it a more speculative connotation
Italiansimile
The Italian word "simile" derives from the Latin word "similis", meaning "similar", and has the same meaning in Italian.
Luxembourgishähnlech
It shares its Germanic roots with English "like" and is related to the Latin word "similis".
Maltesesimili
Simili (similar) in Maltese comes from the Italian word "simile" with the same meaning, but also means "twin".
Norwegianlignende
The Norwegian word "lignende" originates from the Old Norse word "líkneski" meaning "resemblance".
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)semelhante
The word "semelhante" originally meant "to resemble" or "to be like" in Old Portuguese, but has since evolved to mean "similar".
Scots Gaeliccoltach
The archaic and rarely used word "coltach" can also mean "beautiful" or "handsome".
Spanishsimilar
The Spanish word "similar" comes from the Latin "similis," meaning "like" or "resembling"
Swedishliknande
Liknande comes from the Old Norse líkr and originally meant 'body' or 'form'.
Welshtebyg
Tebyg has additional uses referring to equality, as well as being comparable or of an equal value, in the sense of being appropriate or good enough to serve as a replacement for another.

Similar in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianпадобныя
The word падобныя also has an old meaning - "equal"}
Bosnianslično
Slično can also mean "similarly" or "like" in Bosnian.
Bulgarianподобен
The word "подобен" also means "suitable" or "appropriate" in Bulgarian.
Czechpodobný
The term 'podobný' has Slavic roots and is related to the words 'po' (after) and 'dobrý' (good), implying something that follows after or close to something that is good or desirable.
Estoniansarnased
"Sarna" in "sarnased" means similar, same or alike. "Nase" means face, nose or mouth. Therefore sarnased can also mean "having similar noses."
Finnishsamanlainen
The word "samanlainen" comes from the suffix "-lainen", which denotes similarity or belonging to a group.
Hungarianhasonló
The Hungarian word "hasonló" (similar) comes from the Old Hungarian word " hasonlít " (to resemble), which is related to the Slavic word "spodobiti" (to compare).
Latvianlīdzīgi
"Līdzīgi" comes from "līdz", meaning "together" or "equal".
Lithuanianpanašus
The word "panašus" in Lithuanian, meaning "similar", originates from the verb "panėti", which means "to put together".
Macedonianслични
The word "слични" also has a connotation of "flattering" or "complimentary" in Macedonian.
Polishpodobny
The Polish word "podobny" also means "like" or "resembling".
Romaniansimilar
The Romanian word "similar" comes from the Latin word "similis", meaning "like" or "resembling".
Russianаналогичный
The word "аналогичный" comes from the Greek prefix "ана-" (meaning "similar") and the root "лог-" (meaning "word, reason, speech").
Serbianслично
The word "слично" in Serbian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *sъličьnъ, which originally meant "resembling" or "related".
Slovakpodobný
The word "podobný" can also mean "inclined" or "prone".
Slovenianpodobno
The word "podobno" also means "similarly" and "likely" in Slovenian.
Ukrainianподібні
The word "подібні" is also used in the sense of "alike" or "comparable".

Similar in South Asian Languages

Bengaliঅনুরূপ
The word "অনুরূপ" in Bengali can also mean "appropriate" or "conforming to a standard".
Gujaratiસમાન
The word "સમાન" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सम" (sama), meaning "equal" or "identical".
Hindiसमान
The word "समान" can also mean "equal" or "alike" in Hindi.
Kannadaಹೋಲುತ್ತದೆ
Malayalamസമാനമായത്
"സമാനമായത്" also means "alike, comparable, even, equal, equivalent, identical, like, matching, parallel, same, similar"
Marathiसमान
The Marathi word "समान" can also refer to "equal" or "uniform".
Nepaliसमान
समान also means "the beginning of the second half of a night" or "the middle of the night" in Nepali.
Punjabiਸਮਾਨ
The word 'ਸਮਾਨ' in Punjabi can also refer to luggage or baggage.
Sinhala (Sinhalese)සමාන
In Sinhala, "සමාන" also means "equal," "identical," or "equivalent."
Tamilஒத்த
Etymology: From Proto-Dravidian *utti 'one, same'. Cognates include Kannada ottu 'one, same'. Alternate meaning: unity, agreement.
Teluguసారూప్యత
సారూప్యత ('similar') ultimately stems from the Sanskrit term 'sārūpyam' ('of a similar form'), indicating a connection to 'rūpa' ('form').
Urduاسی طرح
The word “اسی طرح” can also mean “in the same way” or “after all”.

Similar in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)类似
类似 in Chinese also means 'similar in type, kind or nature'.
Chinese (Traditional)類似
The first character, 類, can also refer to "category" or "type" while the second character, 似, signifies "resemblance"
Japanese同様
The word "同様" can also mean "in the same way" or "in the same manner".
Korean비슷한
"비슷하다" means to be close to something in terms of appearance, character, or quality. It also can mean to be nearly right or correct.
Mongolianижил төстэй
Myanmar (Burmese)အလားတူ

Similar in South East Asian Languages

Indonesianserupa
The word 'serupa' can also mean 'like' in Indonesian.
Javanesepadha
The term 'padha' (similar) may also refer to the concept of 'equality' in the Javanese language and culture.
Khmerស្រដៀងគ្នា
Laoຄ້າຍຄືກັນ
Malayserupa
The Indonesian word "serupa" also refers to something superficial and illusory
Thaiคล้ายกัน
"คล้ายกัน" also means 'to embrace,' like in 'เธอโอบกอดฉัน' ('she embraced me').
Vietnamesegiống
"Giống" can also mean "species", "kind", "race", or "group", and can be used in a variety of contexts, such as biology, botany, and sociology.
Filipino (Tagalog)katulad

Similar in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanioxşar
The word "oxşar" in Azerbaijani is derived from the Persian word "hamšahr" meaning "fellow townsman" or "neighbor."
Kazakhұқсас
The Kazakh word "ұқсас" is ultimately derived from the Proto-Turkic word "*uqsak" and also means "to be in harmony"
Kyrgyzокшош
The word "окшош" also means "matching" or "appropriate" in Kyrgyz.
Tajikмонанд
Although the Tajik word "монанд" means "similar" in English, there are some alternate definitions that are more nuanced than a simple translation can convey.
Turkmenmeňzeş
Uzbeko'xshash
The word 'o'xshash' also means 'comparable' in Uzbek.
Uyghurئوخشىشىپ كېتىدۇ

Similar in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianlike
Like can also be used to express emotion, as in "Aloha wau ia 'oe," meaning "I love you."
Maoririte
The Maori word 'rite' can also mean 'to be cooked' or 'to be heated'.
Samoantali tutusa
The Samoan word "tali tutusa" translates to "similar" in English and is also used to describe something that is "level" or "even".
Tagalog (Filipino)katulad
"Katulad" in Tagalog can also mean "likeness", "resemblance", and "equivalent".

Similar in American Indigenous Languages

Aymaraniy kipka
Guaranijoguaha

Similar in International Languages

Esperantosimila
The word 'simila' is derived from the Latin word 'similis'.
Latinsimilis
"Similis" in Latin also refers to "a flattened image or imitation" or a "counterfeit coin."

Similar in Others Languages

Greekπαρόμοιος
The word “παρόμοιος” (“similar”) stems from the preposition “παρά” (“near”) and “όμοιος” (“the same”) and literally means “being near the same.”
Hmongzoo sib xws
The phrase literally means “like each other” or “of the same kind.”
Kurdishnêzbûn
The word "nêzbûn" is derived from the Old Kurdish word "nêzbe", meaning "closeness, proximity".
Turkishbenzer
The Turkish word "benzer" is related to the word "ben" meaning "I, me" and is also used to mean "resembles".
Xhosangokufanayo
Xhosa has several words for things that are similar; "ngokufanayo" is one, and it can also mean "in the same way."
Yiddishענלעך
The Yiddish word 'ענלעך' ('similar') originates from the Hebrew word 'עול' ('yoke'), referring to two things being joined together like a yoke.
Zuluokufanayo
Okufanayo in Zulu can also mean 'the same' or 'alike'.
Assameseএকেধৰণৰ
Aymaraniy kipka
Bhojpuriएके निहन
Dhivehiއެއްގޮތް
Dogriइक्कै जनेहा
Filipino (Tagalog)katulad
Guaranijoguaha
Ilocanoagpada ti
Kriofiba
Kurdish (Sorani)هاوشێوە
Maithiliसमान
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯃꯥꯟꯅꯕ
Mizoinang
Oromowalfakkaataa
Odia (Oriya)ସମାନ
Quechuakaqlla
Sanskritसंरूप
Tatarохшаш
Tigrinyaተመሳሳሊ
Tsongafana

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