to liken
homoioo expresses drawing a comparison or being made like another person or example.
Its predominant use introduces or states a comparison, especially when a kingdom, a generation, or a hearer is set alongside an illustrative example. In a smaller group of clauses, it describes persons as made or becoming like others, including likeness to men, brothers, or named cities.
Senses in use
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Setting something alongside an illustrative comparison · dominant
In Luke 13:18 and Luke 13:20, the first-person future active form asks what the kingdom of God should be likened to; the APB renders the questions, “to what shall I liken it?” and “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God?” Mark 4:30 similarly uses a first-person aorist active subjunctive in asking how the kingdom of God may be likened, while Matthew 13:24 uses a third-person aorist passive indicative as the kingdom is presented alongside the sower in the parable.
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Being made or becoming like another · occasional
The passive forms describe likeness affecting persons: Hebrews 2:17 has an aorist passive infinitive in the statement that he had to be made like his brothers, and Acts 14:11 has an aorist passive participle as the crowd says the gods came down in the likeness of men. Matthew 6:8 prohibits becoming like “them,” while Romans 9:29 speaks of becoming like Sodom and being made like Gomorrah.
In the Anselm Project Bible: Across these verses, the APB variously presents the comparison with “liken,” “compare,” “is like,” and “has been likened,” and presents personal likeness with “be made like,” “be like,” and “become like.” These are verse-level renderings rather than definitions.