Sentence: If like were always to marry like, the world would soon be full of...

[Volcano1985]

"If like were always to marry like, the world would soon be full of petrified cranks, Dominie."

What is if like here?

[Alan]

Hi Volcano,

'Like' in your sentence suggests 'people of a similar type'. It is also, I would suggest, used more for things rather than people. You could see this for example in an insurance policy where the company will offer a replacement for an item that has been damaged that is the same and this would be described as 'like for like'. In that sense it is used for a singular noun.

Alan
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