- We’ll not see his like again.
- We’ll not see him like again.
Are both correct?
Do they mean the same? - We’ll not see Mandela like again.
Is #3 correct?
Please comment.
Thanks.
To me, ‘the like of’ would be better.
Interesting question, I really want to know the answer from our experts.
I am not quite get the meaning of them.
Do they carry the meaning of : We will not see someone like him ever again. (because he’s unique, one and only,special…)
I am not sure we need “the like of” as Anglophile said.
I have tried to google the sentence and surprisingly, It came out that the first sentence is correct.
belfasttelegraph.co.uk/incom … 25670.html
Only sentence number 1 is correct.
- could possibly be
We’ll not see anyone like him again.
or
We’ll not see the like of him again.
All of them indicate that there will never be anyone else like him (because he is special in some way).
- should be
We’ll not see Mandela’s like again.
Crystal clear, Thank you Bee 
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
Yes, Mr. Cheng, it is.
You probably already know this, but …
Sometimes when a person wants to express a NEGATIVE feeling about someone, he might say:
“I am so glad that Mr. X will soon be leaving the government. I hope that we never see the likes of him again.”
Furthermore, some (repeat: some) people even feel that the plural “likes” can also carry a POSITIVE meaning:
“Miss Florence Nightingale was the greatest nurse that the world has ever seen. We shall never see the likes of her again.”
Most books, however, advise us – IN ORDER TO BE SAFE – to use the plural ONLY when we want to express a negative meaning.
James
Thanks, James, for the information.
Thank you James, all of your replies are very detailed and good explanation. It’s easy for any learners to follow.
Somehow, I become a fan of you and Bee.
I did not know “likes” can carry the negative meaning. Thanks for giving more information.
Beeesneees,
- We’ll not see the like of him again.
- We’ll not see the likes of him again.
Are both acceptable? Do they mean the same?
Thanks.
Both are acceptable, but the second is preferable according to James whose explanation remains unquestioned.
That is not what James said, Anglophile.
Allifathima, both are fine. If the sentence is intended to be negative then (2) is more likely. If it is intended to be positive, then (1) is more likely (though this is a minor point these days, and if you see it written, you should look at the context to decide whether it has positive or negative connotations, not just make an assumption from whichever form is written).
As your sentences are not placed in context, there is no way of telling whether they are meant positively or negatively.
You seem to be rather confused, Anglophile. What’s the purpose of repeating James’s words?
As I indicated in message #11, what you say in message #10 is NOT what James says. You haven’t completed his quote.
Fathima
I happened to answer your post, unfortunately. However, you may read the views expressed and decide upon the word you think more acceptable. I’m sorry if I have confused you.
Hi Anglophile
What Bee was trying to say is We cannot tell which one is likely/ preferable to be used without the specific context.
If the context carries the negative meaning “likeS” is likely to be used
If the context carries the positive meaning “like” is likely to be used.
Without further information, We can’t tell.
oops, Look like you just got the point
Hi,
Hardly could my observation make you re-evaluate what was previously said, just: ‘the likes of’ I was and am coming across were meant mostly to refer to type of person/thing rather than characterize them in a negative/positive way. Will you assess them positively or negatively:
“It’s a raw, pumping track with incisive and conscious lyrics chronicling the heroes of jazz history, interspersed with inspired samples from the likes of John Coltrane and Charlie Parker.
They pretended that what was happening was not happening, and if it were to happen, it would certainly never happen to the likes of them.
Visitors to Canterbury this season will not be surprised, then, to find a pitch which ultimately favours the likes of Hooper, Davis and Patel, when he is down from Manchester Polytechnic.
Music Week cites a bass player who receives about £800 for backing the likes of Paul Young and Julia Fordham.
Or is it all right for you to keep your own kids, but the likes of us, ordinary people, who’ve got to give up —’
That is to say, I am talking of the likes of Mr Marshall of Charleville House, or Mr Lane of Bridewood.
‘It’s OK against the likes of Romania and the USA, but I don’t think they’d be as impressive as that against England or New Zealand’, said Ondarts.
The end-user roster includes the likes of Alcatel, … Barclay’s Bank, Boeing,
The 1956 Olympics at the MCG were opened by a president of MCC, Prince Philip, and were dominated by the likes of Kuts, Cuthbert, Devitt and Fraser.
Thus, Stevie Wonder and Al Green are just as likely to be cited as influences alongside the likes of Soul II Soul or Public Enemy.
Newton’s physics, however, once it had been created and developed by way of the conjectures of the likes of Galileo and Newton, was a superior theory that superseded Aristotle’s.
Also, I was always under the impression that the likes of Constable, whilst in full knowledge that they were at the top of their profession, regarded themselves as craftsmen.
Instead we’ve spent the last 60 or so years trying to live up the likes of Jean Harlow, Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly.”
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
I have noticed that some experts say that people will often use “likes” when they want to show (insincere?) modesty:
Tom: Do you like Mona?
James: I sure(ly) do!
Tom: Well, then, why don’t you ask her out for a date?
James: Are you crazy?
Tom: What do you mean?
James: She would never go out with the likes of me – old, stupid, ugly.
Thank you, Cheng. Things are clear, even otherwise. But how can we then say whether one or the other is or both are acceptable or not without a context?
How did one say that only one is correct without the context?
Again I base my argument on this:
Furthermore, some (repeat: some) people even feel that the plural “likes” can also carry a POSITIVE meaning.
It, therefore, follows that regardless of the context being negative or positive, the plural can also be acceptable.
I think I am free to join the ‘some’ and hold the view I have already expressed, aren’t I?
Perhaps that so oft mentioned Mona wouldn’t fancy meeting the likes of me either. Nasty, petty, sceptical.