And the likes / And the like

‘And the like’ is the more traditional expression which means ‘and things similar to what has been mentioned.’

But what is popular in most Nigerian conversations is, ‘and the likes.’ Perhaps the logical reason for adopting this wrong expression flows from sentence structures such as:

“The likes of John and Jude are rare.” 

The term ‘the likes of’ “introduces” examples or names of people, events or things that are similar in some way. The emphasis is on introduction.

It is correct to say, for instance:

“Cake, bread and the like are sweet.”

But it is wrong to say:

Cake, bread and the likes are sweet.