Similis

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A term derived from Latin used to denote resemblance or similarity between entities or concepts
2. representing likeness in characteristics or attributes
3. describing a condition or quality of being similar or analogous in nature or function

Etymology: Latin "similis" meant "like" or "resembling." Its neuter form, "simile," became the name Roman writers and rhetoricians gave to a figure of speech that compares one thing to another using "like" or "as." English "simile" keeps that technical sense, so the word has always been tied to comparison. English "similar" comes from Medieval Latin "similaris," a derivative of the same root. It carries the same sense of likeness without the rhetorical label. Through these forms, "similis" is the ancestor of a family of resemblance words. The root is likely connected to Latin "simul," meaning "at the same time" or "together," though the exact link is uncertain and its deeper ancestry is debated. The surviving Latin forms remain the clearest evidence of what the word meant.

Synonyms: similar, alike, comparable, resembling

Antonyms: different, dissimilar, unlike