Can "Like/Unlike" be followed by a preposition?

Question

Hi,

Can the word like or unlike be followed by a preposition when used for comparison? I only ask because Manhattan SC says "Like" is a preposition and can not be followed by either a clause or prepositional phrase. 
Does that mean the following structures are incorrect?
a) Like Dan  of Utah , Patrick ......
b) Unlike  in Utah , Colorado has xxxx

May be the ones above are terrible examples. Can someone tell me what does Manhattan SC mean when it says "like" cannot be followed by a prepositional phrase?

Thanks a lot!

CrackverbalGMAT · Answer

like/unlike are prepositions and thus must be followed by things that are nouns/noun phrases.

the first one is correct because you are comparing the noun phrase "Dan of Utah" to "Patrick". Not "of Utah" to Patrick.
Note that "Dan" is the main noun and "of Utah" serves as a modifier.

the second example is incorrect because "in Utah" is not a noun/noun phrase. Moreover, we are comparing "in Utah" to "Colorado".
Hence, incorrect.

ArtVandaley · Answer

Just to add further details to the questions,

How about this structure?

Temples in India, like in Bhutan, are elegant. 
Is this acceptable? Here "temples can be understood" before "in Bhutan", making the comparison apt. mikemcgarry   daagh   GMATNinja

Brego · Answer

darshak1 CrackVerbalGMAT EducationAisle Here are my notes. Correct me if I am wrong somewhere

 NO VERBS, PREPOSITIONS OR CLAUSES ARE ALLOWED RIGHT AFTER THEM. Note that noun + verb-ed modifier is permissible. If you look at these words, most of them have preposition at the end: 1) In spite of 2) Despite of 3) Instead of 4) compared to 5) as compared with 6) because of 7) evidence of 8) like 9) unlike 10) as well as 11) including 12) over  Ex – Like in Detroit, In New York… Wrong! Preposition “like” is immideatly followed by preposition in Ex – Like food in detroit, food in new york… Correct. Preposition “like” is not immideatly followed by another peposition  Ex – Because of Mike danced in the Hall, Security officers were mad. Wrong. “Mike danced in the hall” is a clause with noun + verb Ex – Because of Mike is dancing in the Hall, security officers were mad. Wrong. “mike is dancing in the hall” is a clause with noun + verb Ex – Because of Mike dancing in the Hall, security officers were mad. Correct. “Dancing” is a verb-ing modifier not a verb by itself so it is correct.  Ex – Mike is running instead of dancing Correct. “Dancing” in by itself is not a verb Ex – Mike is running instead of is dancing. Wrong. “is dancing” is a verb.

EducationAisle · Answer

Looks all good.

It does seem to me that  as well as  can be followed by a verb/preposition too.

He ate as well as drank .

He indulged in eating as well as in drinking .

vv65 · Answer

Is "like in Utah" right or wrong?

According to traditional grammar rules, it is probably wrong

According to common, informal usage, it is acceptable.

According to the GMAT?
It's PROBABLY not acceptable.

But the GMAC does occasionally surprise us.
I wouldn't use the rule to eliminate SC answers in the FIRST PASS through the answer choices. What I mean is, let's treat it as a preference, not as a non-negotiable, fatal-error rule that can never be broken.

Posted from my mobile device

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Can "Like/Unlike" be followed by a preposition?

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