resemblance

English

Alternative forms

• resemblaunce

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman resemblance, from Old French (compare French ressemblance). Morphologically resemble +‎ -ance.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈzɛmbləns/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɹəˈzɛmbləns/
• Rhymes: -ɛmbləns
• Hyphenation: re‧sem‧blance

Noun

resemblance (countable and uncountable, plural resemblances)

1. The quality or state of resembling.

   Synonyms: likeness, similitude, similarity

   • 1838 (date written), L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “(please specify the page)”, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], published 1842, →OCLC, pages 16–17:

     His wife and sister had too many points of resemblance, not to entertain a strong and mutual dislike.

   • 2001 April 16, J. Michael Davis, “Manganese and Rhenium”, in Patty's Toxicology, →DOI:

     Before the discovery and confirmation of the existence of rhenium predicted by Mendeleev's periodic law, rhenium was provisionally termed dvi-manganese because of its expected resemblance to manganese.

2. That which resembles, or is similar; a representation; a likeness.
3. A comparison; a simile.
4. Probability; verisimilitude.

Synonyms

• likeness

Derived terms

• family resemblance
• misresemblance
• nonresemblance

Related terms

• semblance

Translations

state of resembling — see also similitude,‎ similarity

• Afrikaans: ooreenstemming
• Armenian: նմանություն (hy) (nmanutʻyun)
• Asturian: semeyanza f, asemeyanza f
• Bulgarian: прилика (bg) f (prilika), сходство (bg) n (shodstvo)
• Catalan: semblança f
• Danish: lighed (da) c
• Finnish: samankaltaisuus (fi), yhdennäköisyys (fi), yhtäläisyys (fi), samanlaisuus (fi)
• French: ressemblance (fr) f
• Friulian: someance f
• Galician: semellanza (gl) f
• Georgian: მსგავსება (msgavseba)
• German: Ähnlichkeit (de) f
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: ὁμοιότης f (homoiótēs)

• Irish: cosúlacht f
• Italian: rassomiglianza (it) f, somiglianza (it) f, assomiglianza f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: likhet (no) m or f

• Occitan: semblança (oc) f
• Plautdietsch: Änlichkjeit f
• Portuguese: semelhança (pt) f
• Russian: схо́дство (ru) n (sxódstvo)
• Scottish Gaelic: coltas m
• Spanish: semejanza (es) f, parecido (es) m, resemblanza f
• Swahili: mfanano
• Swedish: likhet (sv) c
• Telugu: పోలిక (te) (pōlika)
• Venetan: somejansa f

that which resembles

• Bulgarian: подобие (bg) n (podobie)
• Danish: lighed (da) c
• French: ressemblance (fr)
• Galician: parecido (gl)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: likhet (no) m or f

• Scottish Gaelic: coltas m
• Spanish: semejanza (es) f, parecido (es) m
• Swedish: likhet (sv) c

comparison — see also similitude

• Danish: sammenligning
• French: comparaison (fr)
• Russian: сравне́ние (ru) n (sravnénije)
• Spanish: semejanza (es) f, parecido (es) m

probability — see also verisimilitude,‎ possibility

• Danish: sandsynlighed
• French: probabilité (fr)
• Russian: вероя́тность (ru) f (verojátnostʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: coltas m

Old French

Etymology

resembler +‎ -ance.

Noun

resemblance oblique singular, f (oblique plural resemblances, nominative singular resemblance, nominative plural resemblances)

1. similarity (taken as a whole, the qualities than make two or more things similar)

References

• Frédéric Godefroy (1880–1902), “resemblance”, in Dictionnaire de l’ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IX^e au XV^e siècle […], Paris: F[riedrich] Vieweg; Émile Bouillon, →OCLC.
• resemblance on the Anglo-Norman On-Line Hub (has no entry, but lists one citation)