What is the meaning of "was like"

[jay Crawford]

I know the words "was like" is generally considered a slang word and it really depends on the context of something...

So in this case on what I'm asking Does it mean they're not sure specifically about what happened or their age but guessing?

So here's my example... Johnny was like 12 when the Y2K scare happened in the late 90s

Sorry if my English is poor and I didn't know where to post this question since I'm a new member of this website.

 

[emsr2d2]

I know the words phrase "was like" is generally considered a slang word and but that it really depends on the context. of something...

So in this case on what I'm asking In the sentence below, does it mean they're not sure specifically about what happened or about their age but and they're just guessing?

So here's my example...

Johnny was like 12 when the Y2K scare happened in the late 90s.

Sorry if my English is poor. You're a learner. There is no need to apologise.

and I didn't know where to post this question since I'm a new member of this website. You posted it in the correct section.

Welcome to the forum.

Please note my corrections and comments above.

I think you're parsing it wrong. It would be written as "Johnny was, like, 12 when ...". Only the word "like" is the "slang" part. Without it, the rest of the sentence still makes sense - "Johnny was 12 when ...". In that context, the word "like" is used in place of "around" or "approximately" or "I think".

 

[Piscean]

In that context, the word "like" is used in place of "around" or "approximately" or "I think".

I am more inclined to think that it's the meaningless 'like' with which many people pepper their conversation.

 

[Piscean]

Also asked here: https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/john-was-like-12.4043953/

 

[jutfrank]

In that context, the word "like" is used in place of "around" or "approximately" or "I think".

I am more inclined to think that it's the meaningless 'like' with which many people pepper their conversation.

Yes, it could be either. I don't know whether this particular example was found or created by the original poster, but if it was found, my guess would be that it's 'like' for approximation.

 

[Rover_KE]

jay Crawford, please don't post the same question to different forums simultaneously. Post on one forum only, wait for responses and then, only if you are disappointed with/confused by the responses (or there aren't any), post on another forum and include a link to the first forum thread.

(emsr2d2)