Expressing similarity (เหมือน)

To talk about similarities and family resemblances in Thai, you will primarily use the word เหมือน (like / similar to).

A is like B (เหมือน)

When comparing a specific trait of one person to another, place เหมือน right before the person they resemble. To talk about physical looks, use the word หน้าตา (appearance / facial looks).

Structure: Subject + หน้าตา + เหมือน + Person

A and B are alike (เหมือนกัน)

If you are discussing multiple subjects together and want to say they are "alike" or "the same," place เหมือนกัน at the end of the clause.

To negate this and say people do not look alike, simply place ไม่ before เหมือนกัน. This is a useful phrase even when discussing a แฝด (twin).

Comparing Specific Features

You can compare specific features by naming the body part or trait right after the subject.

If you want to describe how that feature looks—like having a โด่ง (prominent / high-bridged) nose—place the adjective immediately after the feature, followed by เหมือน or เหมือนกัน.

Let's look at examples using จมูก (nose) and นิสัย (personality):

Resembling (คล้าย)

While เหมือน is used for things that look "like" or "the same," the word คล้าย specifically means "to resemble" or "be similar to" (but not strictly identical).

Here it is used to describe a ปาก (mouth):

Other Traits

You can apply these exact same grammar patterns to any other physical traits, such as a person's ทรงผม (hairstyle) or รูปร่าง (build / figure).