Skip to main content
Gogaku

All N4 grammar

N4

〜のような

(Noun B) like (noun A)machine translation

FormationNoun A + のような + noun B

〜のような makes a simile that modifies the noun following it: 夢のような話 (a story like a dream), 人形のような顔 (a face like a doll's). To emphasize the simile, add まるで in front: まるで夢のような一日 (a day just like a dream).

〜のような is also used to give examples: 東京のような大きい町 (a big city like Tokyo — Tokyo being one example). Context will tell you whether it's a simile or an example.

This is the noun-modifying form of 〜ようだ, and it behaves like a な-adjective: to modify a noun use のような, to modify a verb or adjective use のように. In casual speech, Japanese speakers replace it with みたいな: 夢みたいな話.

Examples

Related patterns

All N4 grammarReport a content error