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similar

/ˈsɪmələr//ˈsɪmɪlə/·adjective
alike in nature or appearance without being identical
Fig. 1 — Two pendulums of the same length hang from one brass beam, lit warm from the left.
01Definition

Similar means alike — sharing qualities or appearance without being the same. It comes from the Latin similis, 'like', the root behind 'resemble', 'assimilate', and 'simile'. Two things are similar when they correspond closely enough to invite comparison, yet stay distinct, so that you might draw an analogy between them. The standard preposition is 'similar to'. It is gentler than 'identical', which claims full sameness, and it is the natural opposite of different.

02In use
  • iThe two languages are similar enough that a speaker of one can often follow the other.
  • iiHer results were similar to those of earlier studies, which lent them weight.
  • iiiWe chose a similar strategy to the one that had worked the year before.
03Collocations
  • similar to
  • broadly similar
  • strikingly similar
  • a similar approach
  • in a similar way

Family similarity (noun) · similarly (adverb)

04Relations

=alike, comparable, akin, analogous, like

≠different, dissimilar, unalike, distinct

05Compared
PairThe difference
similar vs differentthey drift apart → different; they keep the same rhythm → similar.
similar vs dissimilaralike without being identical → similar; unlike in nature, said formally → dissimilar.
06TOEFL & IELTS

Take the preposition 'similar to' (not 'similar with'). For IELTS Writing Task 1, 'broadly similar' and 'strikingly similar' describe figures that move together; 'similarly' is a clean linker between parallel points. Keep it apart from 'the same' (identical) and from dissimilar; 'not dissimilar' is a formal way of saying quite similar.

07Asked
Is it spelled 'similar' or 'similiar'?
Similar — three syllables, and no i between the l and the a. 'Similiar' is one of English's most common misspellings because the ear expects a vowel there that the spelling denies. There is an old word simular, meaning a pretender, but it is archaic and unrelated to your sentence. When in doubt, count: si-mi-lar, and let the second i be the last one.
Is it 'similar to' or 'similar with'?
Similar to, always — 'similar with' is a reliable error, and the full preposition story sits on the different vs similar page in the 'Compared' list above.
How do you use 'similarly' in writing?
As a linker that flags a parallel: you make one point, then open the next with Similarly to show it runs the same way — 'Costs rose sharply. Similarly, wait times doubled.' The scene above is that word in motion: two matched pendulums keeping the same time, one swing echoing the other. It is a clean, formal connector for IELTS Writing; keep it for genuine parallels, since using it between unrelated points confuses the reader it was meant to guide.
What is the difference between similar and comparable?
Similar says two things are alike. Comparable adds a purpose — alike enough to be measured against each other: 'houses of comparable size' invites the comparison, not just notes the likeness. Comparable is also the more measured, formal word, and it carries a second stress-shifted sense — kum-PARE-uh-bul, 'comparable to the best', meaning worthy of comparison. Reach for it when the point is weighing, not merely resembling.