Etymologically
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alike

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əˈlaɪk/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English iliche, ilike, with forms aliche, alike in the 14th century,[2][3] inherited from Old English ġelīċ (“similar, like”) (adverb ġelīċe) and onlīċ,[2][4][3] from Proto-Germanic *galīkaz, from ga-, together, and *līkam, body, form,[2][3] from PIE *lig-, shape.[2] It was reinforced in Middle English by Old Norse álíkr (“alike”) and álíka.[5][4][3] Cognates include Dutch gelijk, German gleich and Gothic galeiks.[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Like one another, similar: about 950 in the OED;[7] as iliche, about 1175, in Barnhart.[2]

Semantic evolution

Etymonline describes the underlying notion as having a corresponding form or body.[8] Barnhart argues that alike is not a compound of a- and an Old English *līc, and that the adjective like is rather a shortened form of alike.[2] The adverb, in the same manner, is from before 1000,[7] and the adjective is now almost always used after a verb.[3][6] Alike-minded is from 1638.[7]

Timeline

  • c. 950 – similar (adjective).[7]
  • before 1000 – in the same way (adverb).[7]
  • c. 1175 – iliche.[2]
  • 14th century – forms in a-.[3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Closely resembling one another; similar.

Adverb

  1. In the same way or to the same degree.

Word family

  • alikeness
  • soundalike
  • unalike
  • look-alike

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com