In this lesson we’re looking at how to use the words AS IF, AS THOUGH and LIKE in English.
There are plenty of ways to use these expressions, and we’re going to look at all of them.
Have fun with the lesson, and don’t forget to try the quizzes by clicking on their links below
– James.
Lesson Contents
When do we use AS IF, AS THOUGH and LIKE?
You can use the words AS IF or AS THOUGH to talk about some something or somebody looks, sounds or feels:
I feel as if I’ve run a marathon.
That car looks as if it’s going to break down.
She sounded as if she was crying.
You can use AS THOUGH in all of the previous statements:
She sounded as though she was crying.
In informal spoken English you can also use LIKE:
She sounded like she was crying.
Use LOOK + ADJECTIVE and LOOK AS IF + SUBJECT + VERB:
You look sad.
You look as if you’re going to cry.
Match the responses that use AS IF to the statements.
IT LOOKS AS IF / IT SOUNDS AS IF
You can use these forms to make predictions or guesses about things and people. You can use this form with LOOK, SMELL, FEEL, TASTE & SOUND.
Mark is very late, it looks as if he’s not coming.
We took umbrellas because it looked as if it was going to rain.
Can you hear the sirens? It sounds as if there has been an accident.
You can also use AS THOUGH or LIKE:
It looks as though he’s not coming.
It looks like he’s not coming.
Choose the correct missing verb in this quiz. The words will either be LOOK, SMELL, FEEL or TASTE.
Talking about how people do things
You can also use AS IF or AS THOUGH with different verbs to talk about how someone does something. In informal English you can also use LIKE :
He ran as if his life depended on it.
When I told them, they looked at me as though I was crazy.
Complete the following sentences using AS IF and the verb in brackets.
AS IF or AS THOUGH with the past
Sometimes, we can use AS IF or AS THOUGH with the past when you’re talking about the present:
I don’t like her, she acts as if she owned the world.
The meaning is not past in this sentence, despite the fact that we used the word OWNED. This is because we’re talking about an unreal situation (she doesn’t own the world). This is similar to If I + Past / I wish I + Past:
She’s always upsetting me, as if I didn’t have enough problems.
I’m 28, why are you talking to me as if I was a child?
When you use the past in this way, you can also use WERE instead of WAS:
I’m 28, why are you talking to me as if I were a child?
