みたい

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Japanese

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Etymology 1

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Shift from earlier 見たよう (mita yō, literally as if [I] had seen). Appears from the middle of the Meiji period.[1][2]

Alternative forms

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  • (informal, non-standard) みたい (mitai, i-adjective)

Pronunciation

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    • In Tokyo speech, it is pronounced with a downstep after the first mora if the word it attaches to contains no downsteps.

Adjective

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みたい (mitai-na (adnominal みたい (mitai na), adverbial みたい (mitai ni))

  1. (auxiliary, informal) appended after the noun to mean -like, resembling
    ()(むら)(たく)()みたい(ひと)()
    Kimura Takuya mitai na hito o mita.
    [I] saw someone resembling Takuya Kimura.
    (わたし)()鹿()みたいです
    Watashi wa baka mitai desu ne.
    I seem like a fool.
    (きみ)まるで(てん)使()みたい(わら)
    Kimi wa marude tenshi mitai ni warau.
    You smile just like an angel.
Inflection
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Synonyms
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Etymology 2

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Reanalysis of みたい (mitai, na-adjective).

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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みたい (mitai-i (adverbial みたく (mitaku))

  1. (informal, nonstandard) Alternative form of みたい (mitai, na-adjective)
    ○○みたく()きる
    ○○ mitaku ikiru
    to live like X
Usage notes
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  • Not used as the attributive: for example, *○○みたい人 (person who is like X) is not said.
  • Especially visible as the adverbial みたく (mitaku), which is standardly みたいに (mitai ni).
Inflection
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Etymology 3

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Alternative spelling
見たい

Pronunciation

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Verb

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みたい (mitai

  1. desiderative form of みる: want to see something; want to try to do something

References

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  1. ^ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典(新装版) [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN