Which one should you use?
While みたい is common in spoken conversation, the form ようだ is the more formal, written version used to express resemblance or appearance.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
みたい is an informal and common way to say "something is like something" in Japanese. In casual spoken Japanese, the particle or copula is often dropped, leaving just みたい at the end of a sentence. For more formal situations, you can use 似ています to convey similarity or ～のようです to state that something resembles something else.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word みたい has several grammatical functions depending on how you use it. It can be attached directly to nouns without any intervening particles like の. To make it a complete predicate in a standard or formal sentence structure, you can add だ to the end to form みたいだ. To use it as an adjective to modify a noun (for example, "a thing like X"), use the form みたいな. To use it as an adverb to modify a verb or an adjective (for example, "run like a wind"), use the form みたいに.
How do you pronounce it?
mitai
Did you know?
- The phrase みたい is actually a linguistic contraction of the phrase 見たよう, which literally translates to 'as if [I] had seen'.
- In casual speech, みたい is frequently used as a filler word to soften a statement, similar to how an English speaker might use 'like' or 'sort of'.
- Because it evolved from 'as if seen', using みたい can sometimes imply that your resemblance is based on an impression or assumption rather than a proven fact.
Examples in context
- この絵は昨日見た絵に似ています。This painting is similar to the one I saw yesterday.
- 彼の話し方は先生のようです。His way of speaking is like a teacher's.
- 彼の服装は若者っぽい。His clothing style is youthful.
- 彼の声は風の音のようです。His voice is like the sound of the wind.
- この本は面白いみたい。This book seems interesting.
- 夢みたいだ。yume mitai da.It is like a dream.
- 彼は子供みたいですね。kare wa kodomo mitai desu ne.He is like a child, isn't he?
- それは本当みたいだよ。sore wa hontou mitai da yo.That seems to be true.
Example conversation
Youta and Yui are looking at a cute puppy in a park.
- 陽太 Yotaこの子、ぬいぐるみみたい！kono ko, nuigurumi mitai!This puppy is like a stuffed animal!
- 結衣 Yui本当だ、すごく可愛いね。hontou da, sugoku kawaii ne.You're right, it's so cute.
- 陽太 Yota結衣は、犬が好きだったっけ？Yui wa, inu ga suki datta kke?Yui, did you say you liked dogs?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、大好きだよ。un, daisuki da yo.Yes, I love them.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry みたい, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries みたい, CC BY-SA 4.0.
