'Like' v/s 'Such As'

Is this sentence correct?

I want to eat something sweet like a chocolate or a pastry.

Even though we speak like this in our everyday conversations (BTW is it 'everyday' conversations or 'every day' conversations? Click here to know the difference), what this sentence is implying is that I don't want to eat a chocolate or a pastry but something similar to a chocolate or a pastry.

Here's the rule - On the GMAT 'like' means 'similar to' and 'such as' means 'for example'

So the correct sentence will read:

I want to eat something sweet such as a chocolate or a pastry.

Important: Even if 'such' and 'as' are separated in a sentence, the sentence is still correct.

For example:

I want to eat some such sweet as a chocolate or a pastry.

In the above sentence even though 'such' and 'as' are separated by the word 'sweet' the sentence is absolutely correct and 'chocolate' and 'pastry' are examples of sweets that I want to eat.


To Sum it Up:

1. On the GMAT, use 'like' to imply 'similar to'.
   
   
2. Use 'such as' to imply 'for example'
   
   
3. If confused, go with 'such as'.