look-alike

American  

[look-uh-lahyk] / ˈlʊk əˌlaɪk /

Or lookalike

noun

1. a person or thing that looks like or closely resembles another; double.

2. a compatible.

   The leading brand of computer was expensive so they bought cheap look-alikes.

3. a pill or capsule that contains nonprescription stimulants, as caffeine and ephedrine, but is made to appear like one containing illegal or prescription stimulants, as amphetamine or biphetamine.

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adjective

1. being or characteristic of a look-alike.

Etymology

Origin of look-alike

First recorded in 1945–50; noun use of verb phrase look alike

Explanation

A look-alike is someone who looks almost exactly like another person. Running into your look-alike in a big city would be quite shocking. Some look-alikes are related, like identical twins or cousins who resemble each other to an uncanny degree. Other look-alikes are so similar to celebrities that they can make a living impersonating them. If you are a Michael Jackson look-alike, you could dress like the singer and perform at a talent show, lip syncing his song "Billie Jean" and attempting the moonwalk. Look-alike is an American word, coined around 1937.

Example Sentences

Due to the fact that eels look alike, "all sorts of games are played pretending it's one species when it's another", he said.

From Barron's • Nov. 21, 2025

So Krishna smears color on her so they look alike.

From New York Times • Mar. 22, 2024

At one extreme, multiple species can look alike even though they are different species -- these are known as cryptic species.

From Science Daily • Dec. 21, 2023

Priscilla herself once said in an interview that Elvis "did want me to dye my hair black when I was young so we could look alike a little bit."

From Salon • Nov. 10, 2023

I mean, I wear jeans and T-shirts, and he wears jeans and T-shirts, so we look alike in that way, but who doesn’t wear jeans and T-shirts?

From "All American Boys" by Jason Reynolds

Related Words

• carbon copy
• impersonator