Standard Lemma guide

resemble

verb · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /ɹɪˈzɛmbəl/
  • Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: [ɹɪˈzɛmbl̩]
  • UK: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /ɹɪˈzembəl/
  • Australian: [ɹɪˈzembl̩]
  • New-Zealand: /ɹəˈzembəl/
  • New-Zealand: [ɹəˈzembl̩]
  • CMU ARPABET: R IH0 Z EH1 M B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: R IY0 Z EH1 M B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To be like or similar to (something); to represent as similar.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • The twins resemble each other.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: recall, favor

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To compare; to regard as similar, to liken.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To counterfeit; to imitate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To cause to imitate or be like; to make similar.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

appear like; be similar or bear a likeness to

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • She resembles her mother very much
  • This paper resembles my own work

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: match, fit, correspond, check, jibe, gibe, tally, agree

Narrower terms: look like, come to life, take after, approximate, come close, imitate, echo, recall

History

Etymology

From Middle English resemblen, from Anglo-Norman resembler, ressembler, from re- + sembler (“to seem”). By surface analysis, re- + semble.

Across languages

Translations

101 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: shëmbëllej — to be like or similar to something else
  • Albanian: ngjaj — to be like or similar to something else
  • Southern Altai: ошкоор (oškoor) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Arabic: شَبِهَ (šabiha) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Arabic: مَاثَلَ (māṯala) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Azerbaijani: oxşamaq — to be like or similar to something else
  • Azerbaijani: bənzəmək — to be like or similar to something else
  • Belarusian: быць падо́бным (bycʹ padóbnym) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Bulgarian: приличам (priličam) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Catalan: semblar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Chinese Mandarin: 相似 (xiāngsì) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Czech: připomínat — to be like or similar to something else
  • Czech: podobat se — to be like or similar to something else
  • Danish: ligne — to be like or similar to something else
  • Danish: minde om — to be like or similar to something else
  • Dutch: gelijken op — to be like or similar to something else
  • Dutch: lijken op — to be like or similar to something else
  • Egyptian: n-H-Hr:r (nḥr) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Egyptian: t-w&t-A53-Y1V (twt) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Esperanto: simili — to be like or similar to something else
  • Finnish: muistuttaa — to be like or similar to something else
  • French: ressembler à — to be like or similar to something else
  • Friulian: someâ — to be like or similar to something else
  • Galician: semellar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Galician: asemellar — to be like or similar to something else
  • German: ähneln — to be like or similar to something else
  • German: gleichen — to be like or similar to something else
  • Greek: μοιάζω (moiázo) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Hungarian: hasonlít — to be like or similar to something else
  • Icelandic: líkjast — to be like or similar to something else
  • Ingrian: voittiissa — to be like or similar to something else
  • Irish: is cosúil le — to be like or similar to something else
  • Italian: rassomigliare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Italian: somigliare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Italian: assomigliare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Italian: arieggiare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Japanese: 似ている (nite iru) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Korean: 비슷하다 (biseuthada) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Korean: 닮다 (damda) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Korean: 같다 (gatda) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Kumyk: ошамакъ (oşamaq) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Northern Kurdish: lê çûn — to be like or similar to something else
  • Northern Kurdish: mînîn — to be like or similar to something else
  • Northern Kurdish: şibîn — to be like or similar to something else
  • Latin: similō — to be like or similar to something else
  • Lombard: someià — to be like or similar to something else
  • Luxembourgish: gläichen — to be like or similar to something else
  • Malay: sebiji — to be like or similar to something else
  • Malay: sebijik — to be like or similar to something else
  • Malay: serupa — to be like or similar to something else
  • Malay: menyerupai — to be like or similar to something else
  • Malay: macam — to be like or similar to something else
  • Māori: āhuahua — to be like or similar to something else
  • Māori: kāhukahuka — to be like or similar to something else
  • Māori: āhukahuka — to be like or similar to something else
  • Norman: r'semblier — to be like or similar to something else
  • Norwegian: likne — to be like or similar to something else
  • Norwegian: minne om — to be like or similar to something else
  • Occitan: semblar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Persian: مانستن (mânestan) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Persian: شباهت داشتن (šabâhat dâštan) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Polish: być podobnym — to be like or similar to something else
  • Polish: przypominać — to be like or similar to something else
  • Polish: przypomnieć — to be like or similar to something else
  • Portuguese: assemelhar-se a — to be like or similar to something else
  • Portuguese: semelhar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Quechua: rikch'akuy — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romanian: semăna — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: sumegliar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: semegliar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: samagliear — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: sumiglier — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: sumagliar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Romansh: sumaglier — to be like or similar to something else
  • Russian: походи́ть (poxodítʹ) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Russian: напомина́ть (napominátʹ) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Russian: быть похо́жим (bytʹ poxóžim) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Russian: име́ть схо́дство (imétʹ sxódstvo) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: assimizare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: simizare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: assimbillai — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: simbilai — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: assimbigiai — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: assemizare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: atipizare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: aerai — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sardinian: agghentinare — to be like or similar to something else
  • Serbo-Croatian: sličiti — to be like or similar to something else
  • Sicilian: assimigghiari — to be like or similar to something else
  • Slovak: podobať sa — to be like or similar to something else
  • Spanish: resemblar(se) a — to be like or similar to something else
  • Spanish: semblar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Swedish: likna — to be like or similar to something else
  • Turkish: benzemek — to be like or similar to something else
  • Ottoman Turkish: بكزهمك (beñzemek) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Ukrainian: бу́ти поді́бним (búty podíbnym) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Ukrainian: бу́ти схо́жим (búty sxóžym) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Uyghur: ئوخشىماق (oxshimaq) — to be like or similar to something else
  • Venetan: somejar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Venetan: somegiar — to be like or similar to something else
  • Venetan: somiar — to be like or similar to something else
Real reading context

resemble in complete knowledge articles