resemblance
Americannoun
-
resemblances
plural
-
the state or fact of resembling; similarity.
- Antonyms:
- difference
-
a degree, kind, or point of likeness.
- Synonyms:
- similitude, analogy
-
a likeness, appearance, or semblance of something.
- Synonyms:
- image
noun
-
the state or quality of resembling; likeness or similarity in nature, appearance, etc
-
the degree or extent to which or the respect in which a likeness exists
-
something resembling something else; semblance; likeness
Synonym Usage
Resemblance, similarity imply that there is a likeness between two or more people or things. Resemblance indicates primarily a likeness in appearance, either a striking one or one which merely serves as a reminder to the beholder: The boy has a strong resemblance to his father. Similarity may imply a surface likeness, but usually suggests also a likeness in other characteristics: There is a similarity in their tastes and behavior.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of resemblance
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, equivalent to resembl(er) “to resemble” resemble + -ance -ance
Explanation
A resemblance is a similarity in appearance. Children usually have a strong resemblance to their biological parents. When you talk about resemblances, you're talking about people or things that look alike in some way. Relatives often have resemblances because they share the same genes. Perhaps you have a resemblance to a famous person. Many people think there's a resemblance between dogs and their owners. If someone draws a picture of you, but it has no resemblance to what you really look like, they did a bad job.
Vocabulary lists containing resemblance
Kindred
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"Phaethon"
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Flush
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The gameplay bears a striking resemblance to Tetris.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
And there was even a comparison about the "eerie resemblance" between Stasi HQ in East Germany and the office he occupied when he was the leader of South Lanarkshire Council.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
The unhappy men meet and, noticing a resemblance to one another, arrive at an unspoken agreement to trade lives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Its appearance bears little obvious resemblance to the spiders and scorpions that descended from its broader evolutionary lineage.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
“I cannot agree with you. It appears to me a most perfect resemblance in every feature. I never saw such a likeness in my life. We must allow for the effect of shade, you know.”
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
Seyfried and Sweeney were chosen to play the two female leads in The Housemaid because of their physical resemblances, but Seyfried says the similarities do not end there.
From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2025
The bloggers and columnists, clickbait news sites, and social media influencers promise forensic detail: the way clothes move, the anatomy of the pregnant body, the tone of her denials, the baby’s resemblances.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2025
She notices resemblances between certain attendees and her grandmother.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2023
ME/CFS bears striking resemblances to long COVID, with symptoms such as immune system dysregulation, fatigue and cognitive dysfunction.
From Scientific American ● Feb. 14, 2023
One of Tariq’s friends, on the basis of the most passing of resemblances to Sylvester Stallone, insisted he be called Rambo.
From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
