as though

A a

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [az th oh]
- /æz ðoʊ/
- /əz ðəʊ/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [az th oh]
- /æz ðoʊ/

Definitions of as though words

phrase as though You use as if and as though when you are giving a possible explanation for something or saying that something appears to be the case when it is not. 3
adverb as though for all that; however. 1
preposition as though in the role, function, or status of: to act as leader. 1
idioms as though as though, as if: It seems as though the place is deserted. 1
noun as though As a conjunction, one sense of as is “because”: As she was bored, Sue left the room. As also has an equally common use in the sense “while, when”: As the parade passed by, the crowd cheered and applauded. These two senses sometimes result in ambiguity: As the gates were closed, he walked away. (When? Because?) As … as is standard in both positive and negative constructions: The fleet was as widely scattered then as it had been at the start of the conflict. Foreign service is not as attractive as it once was. So … as is sometimes used in negative constructions (… not so attractive as it once was) and in questions (“What is so rare as a day in June?”). The phrase as far as generally introduces a clause: As far as money is concerned, the council has exhausted all its resources. In some informal speech and writing, as far as is treated as a preposition and followed only by an object: As far as money, the council has exhausted all its resources. As to as a compound preposition has long been standard though occasionally criticized as a vague substitute for about, of, on, or concerning: We were undecided as to our destination. As to sometimes occurs at the beginning of a sentence, where it introduces an element that would otherwise have less emphasis: As to his salary, that too will be reviewed. As to what and as to whether are sometimes considered redundant but have long been standard: an argument as to what department was responsible. See also all, farther, like1, so1. 1
noun as though as if 1

See all 7 definitions of as though

Information block about the term

Origin of as though

First appearance:

before 1000

One of the 6% oldest English words

before 1000; Middle English as, als, alse, also, Old English alswā, ealswā all so (see also), quite so, quite as, as; cognate with Middle Dutch alse (Dutch als), Old High German alsō (Middle High German álsō, álse, als, German also so, als as, as if, because)

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for As though

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of As though

as though popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 100% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.

Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

as though usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for as though

conj as though

as it were — You say as it were in order to make what you are saying sound less definite.
just as — at the moment when
so to speak — to utter words or articulate sounds with the ordinary voice; talk: He was too ill to speak.

adv as though

apparently — You use apparently to indicate that the information you are giving is something that you have heard, but you are not certain that it is true.
presumably — by assuming reasonably; probably: Since he is a consistent winner, he is presumably a superior player.
probably — in all likelihood; very likely: He will probably attend.
supposedly — assumed as true, regardless of fact; hypothetical: a supposed case.

All 7 Synonyms of as though