What's it like?

Question

Hello!For people we can ask either: "What does he/she look like?" this one expresses the appearance of a person and " What is he/she like?" expresses their personality and character.What about things? Can we ask both questions?For example: What is a hamburger like? It's delicious, hot, spicy...What does a hamburger look like? it's round....

Teechr · Accepted Answer

AnonymousWhat is a hamburger like?

That's not the way you'd phrase it. In colloquial conversation, you're more likely to use the contracted "what's", e.g., "What's your hamburger like?"

AnonymousWhat does a hamburger look like? it's round....

That's okay as a general question about hamburgers.

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousWhat about things? Can we ask both questions?For example: What is a hamburger like? It's delicious, hot, spicy...What does a hamburger look like? it's round....

Yes, you can ask both questions about things; however, it often amounts to asking the same thing either way.

What is a castle like? / What does a castle look like?

To explain what a castle is like you would probably include what it looks like. In fact, that is likely to be the first thing you'll hear in the reply. For a deeper explanation, you'd probably have to ask some other questions, like "What is it like to live in a castle?"

The same applies to a hamburger. You might have to ask what it tastes like to get the "delicious, hot, spicy" answer. A lot of people will tell you what a hamburger is like by describing how it looks first.

CJ

What's it like?

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