SuGoiSuす語彙すGrammar › N1 · 12 Inference and judgment
〜ごとし・〜ごとく: like; as if (literary)
N1 · 12 Inference and judgment
A classical way to say like or just as, used in set expressions and formal writing.
Noun + の + ごとく/ごとき/ごとし, or verb dictionary form + がごとく. Common: 光陰矢のごとし, 君のごとき人. ごとし ends a sentence, ごとく is adverbial, ごとき modifies a noun. Today it is mostly in proverbs and speeches.
Examples
光陰矢のごとし、と言うように、時間はあっという間に過ぎる。
As they say, time flies like an arrow, and time passes in no time.
彼は、風のごとく現れ、風のごとく去っていった。
He appeared like the wind and left like the wind.