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something like that

something like that

259 2.0
A thing like the one just mentioned
  • idiom
translation icon : algo así
  • Why would you say something like that?
  • say something like that

You can't hear it, but it goes something like that, I think.

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Examples

  • "I think it's to do with Pretty Polly... something like that," Ria explained.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • You know, I really wish we could have something like that at our party.

  • And, you know, I would love to have something like that happen, but we'll see.

  • And this, my friends, is what something like that might look like.

  • You ever thought about doing something like that?

  • You can get hurt doing something like that.

  • So I would recommend something like that for before bed.

  • Now we should do something like that for New Jersey.

  • Something like that doesn't come every day.

  • Have you ever seen something like that before, like a giant cake?

Synonyms

something like
vssomething like that
3.5

Close in type or number to something mentioned

is used for similar items without giving exact detail
to that effect
vssomething like that
21 5.0

Having the same meaning as what was said

is used for listing similar items, not for paraphrasing meaning
and the like
vssomething like that
11 3.5

Things or people similar to those just mentioned

is general usage for similar items without exact naming
and so on
vssomething like that
8 1.4

To talk about other similar things without naming them

is for similar items when speaker keeps listing more examples
and such
vssomething like that
8 5.7

Other things like the ones mentioned

is used when speaker avoids more specific listing
suchlike
vssomething like that
  • Archaic
2 7.0

Like the other things just mentioned

is a neutral term for items sharing the same type
all that jazz
vssomething like that
  • Informal
1 7.9

Other similar things you could mention

is the neutral phrase used without informal tone
thus and such
vssomething like that
  • Informal
9.9

To talk about things already mentioned when the details are not important

is broader, focusing on similarity rather than forgotten specifics

How Specific

specific
4.3
something like that
259 2.0
and such
8 5.7
weasel-worded
  • Literature
9.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

something + like + that

The meaning is directly compositional: 'something' (an unspecified thing) + 'like' (similar to) + 'that' (the thing just mentioned) yields the intended sense of 'things similar to that'. This straightforward similarity construction is cross-linguistically common and follows basic grammar, so a B1 learner who knows the parts will readily understand it.

Etymology

The phrase something like that comes from the simple act of pointing at one example and saying something, like, that to show other things that look similar. So it now means 'things that are similar' or 'not exact'.