likes

Likes are a form of positive social feedback used on many digital platforms to signal approval, affinity, or interest in a post, image, or comment. In English, "like" is a verb meaning to find something pleasing; the third-person singular present tense is "likes." As a noun, "a like" can refer to something one enjoys, and "likes" can denote multiple such things or, in social media context, the count of affirmative reactions.

In social networks, a "like" is a lightweight form of engagement attached to content. The feature originated as a simple acknowledgement and has expanded to serve as a basic metric of popularity and algorithmic signal. Users may see counts, trends, or badges, and platforms often design it to encourage reciprocal interaction. Networks may offer additional reactions (such as love, laughter, or anger) to convey a broader range of responses, while "like" remains a central or default action on many services.

Implications: likes provide feedback to creators and can affect the visibility and reach of content. They contribute to social validation and can influence user behavior and platform economics. Critics argue that like-based feedback may be non-representative, encourage performative posting, and contribute to privacy concerns and mental health effects.

Variations: within discourse outside platforms, "likes" simply refer to preferences (e.g., "her likes include jazz and hiking"). Related concepts include upvotes, reactions, and engagement metrics.

See also: online engagement, social media metrics, digital culture.