好きだ・すきだ

Adjective (な) (Basic ㊦ 426)

Something or someone is what someone likes.

Equivalent: Like; be fond of

私はステーキが好きだ・好きです。: I like steak.
僕は野球が好きだ。: I like baseball.
ジョンソンさんはジャズが大好きです。: Mr. Johnson loves jazz.

Notes

1. 好きだ is a な type adjective which requires the "は~が construction". That is, the experiencer (i.e., the person who likes someone or something) is marked by は and the liked object by が. (⇨ は~が) Note that the liked object is marked by が not by を.

2. In subordinate clauses, the experiencer is also marked by が, as in (1) and (2).

私がステーキが好きなことはみんな知っている。
Everybody knows that I like steak.

ジョンが好きなスポーツは野球です。
Literally: The sport John likes is baseball. (= John's favorite sport is baseball.)

3. "Like a lot" is expressed by 大好きだ, as in Example (b).