liken

American  

[lahy-kuhn] / ˈlaɪ kən /

verb (used with object)

likens, present (3rd person singular) likened, past participle, past likening present participle

1. to represent as similar or like; compare.

   to liken someone to a weasel.

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liken British  

/ ˈlaɪkən /

verb

1. (tr) to see or represent as the same or similar; compare

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unlikened
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• likening
  present
• likened
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• liken
  simple
• likens
  simple
• have likened
  perfect
• has likened
  perfect
• am likening
  progressive
• are likening
  progressive
• is likening
  progressive
• have been likening
  perfect progressive
• has been likening
  perfect progressive

Past

• likened
  simple
• had likened
  perfect
• was likening
  progressive
• were likening
  progressive
• had been likening
  perfect progressive

Future

• will liken
  simple
• will have likened
  perfect
• will be likening
  progressive
• will have been likening
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of liken

First recorded in 1275–1325, liken is from the Middle English word liknen. See like ¹, -en ¹

Explanation

When you liken one thing to another, you compare them and point out what they have in common. You might liken your long walk to school to your ancestors' voyage across the ocean to the New World. When you equate two things, or emphasize their similarities, you liken them. You could liken your experience at the dentist to torture, or liken your dad's skill at baking pies to that of Rembrandt painting a portrait. Your grandmother might liken her romance with your grandfather to a fairy tale, and you could then liken the day you spent listening to her stories to watching a long, dull movie.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

liken likens likened likening

"I liken us to an island and it has often felt hard to imagine anyone joining that island," she said.

From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026

Analysts are largely bullish on both companies and liken picking which one they prefer to choosing a favorite child.

From MarketWatch ● May 25, 2026

With the Southern flavor you bring to comedy, I kind of liken it to hip-hop, when it comes to the regional styles of different comics.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 20, 2026

This "is what replacing looks like," added Polanski, a charismatic figurehead some liken to New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and who only took charge of the Greens last September.

From Barron's ● Feb. 27, 2026

Many would later liken the pairing of Morrow and Halliday to that of Jobs and Wozniak or Lennon and McCartney.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Toussaint likens them to one of TV’s greatest prime time soap operas: “It’s like when I was a kid, and we watched ‘Dallas.’

From Salon ● Jun. 21, 2026

M&S likens it to the grapefruit-based Paloma cocktail and says it follows in Hugo's footsteps.

From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026

Crockett likens that to the approximate weight of a baseball, “which is seen as maybe a nonstarter for mass appeal.”

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026

Rachel Smith, the executive vice president of unscripted content at NBCUniversal, likens the phenomenon to a “new virtual stadium sport.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2026

A net woven from long grass that covers the couple during their vows, the touching of each other’s lips with salt water, and the ancient wedding song, which likens marriage to a sea voyage.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

Tom Baker, 27, who spotted the cat last month, likened it to a "small leopard" when he saw it from a distance.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

Upon awarding the prize, a member of the Nobel committee likened the technology’s ability to store enormous amounts of stuff in seemingly compact spaces to Hermione Granger’s enchanted handbag in the Harry Potter series.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

The 67-year-old said he made a point of visiting Wattana Panich while on vacation, intrigued by the longevity of the mother stock, which he likened to caring for a sourdough starter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, working for German television during the World Cup, likened Tah's disallowed goal to many which Premier League champions Arsenal had scored throughout the season.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

Newspapers launched crusades against pestilent alleys and excess smoke and identified the worst offenders in print—among them Burnham’s newly opened Masonic Temple, which the Chicago Tribune likened to Mount Vesuvius.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan said they were "expecting huge demand" for the exhibition, likening the sale to the annual rush for Glastonbury music festival tickets.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

He said estimating the value of the sapling was difficult, because of its intangible sentimental value, likening it to a piece of "stolen art".

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

A fierce advocate of information control, he argued that the internet had to be tightly managed, likening new technologies to “a wild colt” that “can and must be controlled.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026

“Ultimately, we are trying to pay homage to the bus tour format, which is intrinsically ‘carny,’” Misraje said, likening himself to a carnival barker espousing aesthetic philosophy aboard an ever-changing “Ship of Theseus.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026

In pure simplicity of heart she pays the supreme compliment to Ulysses, likening him indirectly to "a God called down from Heaven by her prayers, to live with her all her days."

From Homer's Odyssey A Commentary by Snider, Denton Jaques

Related Words

• equate
• relate