2021-05-09 ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด – A – as if & as though & like

Revision A

2021-05-09

ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด – A – as if & as though & like

แนะนำการใช้ ตามที่ส่วนใหญ่ใช้ แต่ละท้องถิ่น

ความหมาย อาจผันแปร ตาม ตำแหน่ง/หน้าที่ ในประโยค

Dictionary.com

ออกเสียง though = ‘THOH’

ออกเสียง Like = ‘LAHYK’

Dictionary.com

USAGE NOTE FOR LIKE

Like as a conjunction meaning “as, in the same way as”

(Many shoppers study the food ads like brokers study market reports)

or “as if” (It looks like it will rain)

has been used for nearly 500 years

and by many distinguished literary and intellectual figures.

Since the mid-19th century there have been objections,

often vehement, to these uses.

Nevertheless, such uses are almost universal today

in all but the most formal speech and writing.

In extremely careful speech and in much formal writing,

as, as if, and as though are more commonly used than like:

The commanding general accepted full responsibility for the incident,

as any professional soldier would.

Many of the Greenwich Village bohemians lived as if (or as though) there were no tomorrow.

The strong strictures against the use of like as a conjunction

have resulted in the occasionalhypercorrect use

of as as a preposition where like isidiomatic:

She looks as a sympathetic person.

Like meaning “as if” is also standard

in informal speech and writing with a small number of adjectives:

The crew worked like crazy (or like mad) to finish the job on time.

See also as.

USAGE FOR LIKE

The use of like to mean such as

was formerly thought to be undesirable in formal writing,

but has now become acceptable.

It was also thought that as rather than like

should be used to mean in the same way that,

but now both as and like are acceptable:

they hunt and catch fish as/like their ancestors used to.

The use of look like and seem like before a clause,

although very common, is thought by many people

to be incorrect or non-standard:

it looks as though he won't come (not it looks like he won't come)

Dictionary.com

A better word for like

Wedon’t have a problem with like as a slang interjection.

But saying “I like it” as a compliment is more or less meaningless.

It’s such an empty compliment because it is so general.

It’s also one of the oldest compliments in the world:

it’s been used in this way since before the year 1000.

Instead of like, try one of its synonyms,

such as these stronger verbs of approval:

• admire: This word can express the feeling of looking up

to someoneor something.

I really admire your work.

• appreciate: If you want to express how deeply you are thankful, use appreciate.

My brother really appreciated that you called to congratulate him.

• go for: This informal expression is perfect for describing personal preferences.

I think my dad will really go for this watch.

• cherish: This verb will convey how precious and valuable something is, literally or figuratively.

We will truly cherish this drawing you’ve given us.

Collins COBUILD English Usage

As if

1. 'as if' and 'as though'

You can use as if or as though at the beginning of a clause

when you are describing how someone or something looks,

or how someone behaves.

It's a wonderful item and in such good condition that it looks as though it was bought yesterday.

He lunged towards me as if he expected me to aim a gun at him.

Many people thinkit is incorrect to use 'was' in clauses of this type.

They say you should use were instead.

He looked at me as if I were mad.

She remembered it all as if it were yesterday.

However, in conversation people usually use was.

The secretary spoke as though it was some kind of password.

He gave his orders as if this was only another training exercise.

You canuse was or were in conversation,

but in formal writing you should use were.

2. 'like'

Some people say like instead of 'as if' or 'as though'.

He looked like he felt sorry for me.

Shaerl put up balloons all over the house like it was a six-year-old's party.

This useis generally regarded as incorrect.

Farlex Trivia Dictionary.

although & though

- Although and thoughare interchangeable as conjunctions,

butto start a clause, use although.

See also related terms for interchangeable.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Though

Many more people found themselves concerned

withthe precise meaning of the word though

thanis usual at this time of year,

afterthe word made a small, but important, appearance

in the recently released account of

President Trump’s conversation with the Ukrainian president.

Though may function as a conjunction

(meaning “in spite of the fact that” or “in spite of the possibility that”)

and as an adverb(meaning “however, nevertheless”).

Trump’s use of the word was in its adverbial role.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Like vs. as: Usage Guide

Conjunction

Like has been used as a conjunction

in ways similar to as since the 14th century.

In the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries it was used in serious literature,

but not often;

in the 17th and 18th centuries it grew more frequent but less literary.

It became markedly more frequent in literary use again in the 19th century.

By mid-centuryit was coming under critical fire,

but not from grammarians, oddly enough,

who were wrangling over

whetherit could be called a preposition or not.

There is no doubt that, after 600 years of use,

conjunctive like is firmly established.

It has been used by many prestigious literary figures of the past,

though perhaps not in their most elevated works;

in modern useit may be

found in literature, journalism, and scholarly writing.

While the present objection to it is perhaps more heated than rational,

someone writing in a formal prose style

may well preferto use as, as if, such as,

oran entirely different construction instead.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

like

Like is an intergenerational usage peeve;

your parents (or grandparents) can bemoan its use as a conjunction,

and the younger set can howl about its use as an approximative adverb,

or as a quotative compartmentalizer.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Usage Notes

Learning to Like 'Like'

People have complained about 'like' for decades.

Can a case be made for it?

What’s not to likeabout the word like?

The short answer to that question is "so much."

Like has been a particularly bountiful source of irritation

for people who get annoyed by the language habits of other people:

while most offending words,

such as irregardless,find a single specialty and stick with it,

like annoyspeople in two distinct ways.

Yet in each case,

one can make an argument that like isn't so bad as one might assume.

Ifyou tend to get into arguments about the word like

—or if you simply want to know

how lexicographers could possibly justify the word's use—read on.

People have been complainingabout

supposedly incorrect uses of 'like' for a long time.

But there's nothing wrong with using 'like' as a conjunction

—and the supposedly meaningless use of 'like'

by young people is notreally meaningless,

nor is it limited to a particular age or gender.

Annoyance #1: Using Like As a Conjunction

In 1954, an advertising firm working for Winston cigarettes

adopted a tried-and-tested method of getting their product noticed:

they irritated people.

They did this in a fashion so spectacularly evil, so ingeniously vile,

that people are still talking about it today.

Brace yourselves. Are you ready?

They took a wordthat many people thought should be an adverb,

and they used it as a conjunction.

The 1950s were a different time, but the advertisement that resulted

was one of the most famous ads of the 20th century:

“Winston Tastes Good, Likea Cigarette Should.”

Mass hysteria and outrage soon followed.

The journalist Walter Cronkite,

when given this advertising script to read on the air

in between news broadcasts, refused

—not because he was advertising a product that caused cancer,

but because he didn't like the syntax.

Instead,Cronkite promoted the carcinogenic product

with the phrase "Winston tastes good, as a cigarette should."

Here's the interesting part:

like had been used as a conjunction in English since the 14th century.

It was uncommon,

which may explain

why the complaints about it don't appear until the late 18th century,

but enough people employed the conjunctive like between 1800 and 1950 that we find a steady stream of language watchers cautioning against it:

Like has always been widely misused by the illiterate;

latelyit has been taken up by the knowing and the well-informed,

who find it catchyor liberating,

and who use it as though they were slumming.
—Strunk & White, The Elements of Style, 1959

In spite of these mid-century admonishments,

people kept using like as a conjunction.

In fact, the conjunctive like is

now so prevalent that many people pay it no attention.

And why should they?

Again, the conjunctive like has been in use for 600 years.

It is firmly established.

It has been used by many prestigious literary figures of the past,

though perhaps not in their most elevated works;

in modern use

it may be found in literature, journalism, and scholarly writing.

One may avoid it as a matter of preference,

but one cannot deny its existence.

However, this does not mean that

like has finished its assault upon the sanctity of our language. It has not.

Annoyance #2: Using Like When It Doesn't, Like, Mean Anything

Once people stopped getting upset

about like as a conjunction,

they found a new reason to dislike it:

its use as a meaningless word by young people.

Fair enough.

Exceptthat this newfangled use of like

is not restricted to the young

—it has been found across all ages of English speakers

—and it isn’t at all meaningless.

Linguists who study this use of like

have identified numerous functions.

When someone says

“That has to be, like,the fiftieth time you’ve told me to not use like,”

the word functions as an approximative adverb,

and informs the listener that some estimate of quantity

is included in the sentence.

When that same person says

“My mother was like,'please don’t use like so much,’

”like serves as a quotative compartmentalizer:

something that indicates a portion of the sentence

is quotingor paraphrasing another speaker.

Like is often found grazing at the beginning of sentences,

in a position that is generally thought of as a discourse marker.

A discourse markeris the word you use at the beginning of a sentence

when you say

"Well, I think that using like in that way makes you sound foolish."

It serves a very similar role to the word at the beginning

of the sentence uttered in response to your disapproval:

"Like, that’s just your opinion."

A hundred years ago,

some writerson language instructed writers to avoid well

for many of the same reasons that people condemn like today.

Ambrose Bierce, in his 1909 book Write it Right, referred to well

as"a mere meaningless prelude to a sentence."

Butthere was never any widespread outcry against discourse markers,

largely because most people, writers on language included,

did not know what they were.

Unlessyou're planning a career in linguistics

you needn't concern yourself overmuch with the subject,

except to know that discourse markers are common,

especially in speech, and that pretty much everybody uses them.

Like is not content-free and meaningless

when usedin these instances.

It provides information,

although that information may be subtle and difficult to parse.

If you haven’t the patience to decipher

whether you are hearing a quotative compartmentalizer

or a discourse marker,

take heart in the fact

that like is serving another vitally important lexical role,

and one which is quite easy to understand:

it is giving millions of people something to complain about.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Like

“…You say that something is 'just like the plain folks that all of us are'

…. Did you learn how to use ‘like’ that way

at Groton or Harvard or where?”

— Janet R. Aiken, quoted in The Columbia Daily Spectator, 24 Nov. 1937

About the Word:

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was taken to task for his use of slang

and informal language on more than one occasion.

The quote above was from an open letter written to him

by a professor at Columbia University,

who found fault with his use of the word like as aconjunction

(thisused to be a thing that people complained about,

before they decided to complain about other ways that people use like).

Collins COBUILD English Usage

Although – though

1. used as conjunctions

You use although or though to introduce a subordinate clause

in whichyou mention something that contrasts

with whatyou are saying in the main clause.

Though is not used in very formal English.

I can't play the piano, although I took lessons for years.

It wasn't my decision, though I think I agree with it.

You can put even in front of though for emphasis.

She wore a coat, even though it was a very hot day.

Don'tput 'even' in front of although.

Be Careful!
When a sentence begins with although or though,

don't use'but' or 'yet' to introduce the main clause.

Don'tsay, for example,

'Although he was late, yet he stopped to buy a sandwich'.

You say'Although he was late, he stopped to buy a sandwich'.

Although he was English, he spoke fluent French.

Though he hadn't stopped working all day, he wasn't tired.

Be Careful!
Don't use although or though in front of a noun phrase.

Don'tsay, for example,

'Although his hard work, he failed his exam'.

You say 'In spite of his hard work, he failed his exam'

or 'Despite his hard work, he failed his exam'.

In spite of poor health, my father was always cheerful.

Despite her confidence, Cindy was uncertain what to do next.

2. 'though'used as an adverb

Though is sometimes an adverb.

You use it when you are making a statement that contrasts

with what you have just said.

You usually put though after the first phrase in the sentence.

Fortunately though, this is a story with a happy ending.

For Ryan, though, it was a busy year.

In conversation, you can also put though at the end of a sentence.

I can't stay. I'll have a coffee though.

Although is never an adverb.

Dictionary.com

WORDSOFTEN CONFUSED WITH THOUGH

Among some conservatives

there is a traditional objection to

the use of though in place of although as a conjunction.

However, the latter(earlier all though )

was originally an emphatic form of the former,

and there is nothing in contemporary English usage

to justify such a distinction.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary

though

usage:

Some usage guides object to

the use of though in place of although as a conjunction.

However, the latter (earlier all though) was orig.

an emphatic form of the former,

and there is nothing in contemporary English usage

to justify such a distinction. Both are fully standard.

Dictionary of Problem Words in English

as if & as though & like

Each of these expressions is permissible.

As if is used more often in speech and

in informal writingthan is as though,

which is preferred by careful writers.

Both expressionsare followed by a verb in the subjective mood:

“He left the room as though (as if) he was angry.”

In informalor substandard use,

like sometimes substitutes for as if and as though

butis never followed by the subjective mood.