Like – a morphological evaluative loan marker in German?

Abstract The paper examines whether the borrowed constituent - like in German adjectives such as bilderbuchlike ‘storybook-like’ and Aschenbrödel - like ‘Cinderella-like’ qualifies as an evaluative or, more specifically, approximative marker. Similative items such as like are an important source of approximation. However, it is argued that similarity and comparison alone are not sufficient for establishing approximation. With regard to both the relationship between evaluation and approximation as well as the significance of the concept of approximation for morphological theory in general, the paper argues that it is necessary to define approximation narrowly and, in particular, to distinguish it from other forms of comparison in word-formation. To this end, similative items from English, French, and Italian that have previously been analysed as approximative markers in the literature are examined. The paper concludes that under the conditions specified here, German - like cannot be considered an approximative or evaluative marker.