Usage note : like

When like is used as a preposition (like a child, do it like this) it can generally be translated by comme.

Note however that be like and look like meaning resemble are translated by ressembler à :

she’s like her father or she looks like her father

= elle ressemble à son père

like is used after certain other verbs in English to express particular kinds of resemblance (taste like, feel like, smell like etc.). For translations, consult the appropriate verb entry.

When like is used as a conjunction it is translated by comme :

songs like my mother sings

= des chansons comme celles que chante ma mère

When like is used to introduce an illustrative example (big cities like London) it can be translated by either comme or tel/telle/tels/ telles que : les grandes villes comme Londres or les grandes villes telles que Londres.

For particular usages of like as a preposition or conjunction and for noun and adverb uses, see the entry like1.

Big English-French dictionary. 2003.