Same

Same is a common English word that serves as an adjective, determiner, and pronoun. It denotes identity or exact similarity between two or more things under discussion, or a thing’s identity with a previously mentioned item. For example: “these two shirts are the same” uses identity; “I did the same” uses the pronoun function to refer to a previously described action. As a determiner, it precedes a noun: “the same result,” “the same issue.” It is also used in fixed phrases such as “the very same” to stress identity.

The standard comparative forms “same” do not take -er or -est; you use “the same” with as for comparison rather than forms like “samer.” The construction “the same as” is used to compare equivalence: “the same as yesterday.” Some idioms expand to “the same difference” (ironically, meaning no real difference) and “not the same” to indicate dissimilarity.

Etymology: from Old English sama “together, alike,” related to other Germanic words for “alike.” In mathematics and logic, “the same” expresses equality between values, expressions, or objects. In computer science, phrases like “same-origin policy” use the word to express identity of source.

Common synonyms include identical, equal, alike, and similar; however, same implies identity in a specified respect rather than general similarity. The term is widely used across formal and informal registers and appears in numerous collocations, including “the same as,” “the very same,” and “same here.”