As ifandas thoughareconjunctions.
We useas ifandas thoughto make comparisons. They have a similar meaning. We useas ifandas thoughto talk about an imaginary situation or a situation that may not betrue but that is likely or possible.As ifis more common thanas though:
The floods were rising and it wasas ifit was the end of the world.
It looksas ifthey’ve had a shock.
It looksas thoughyou’ve not met before.
We can use bothas ifandas thoughfollowed by a non-finite clause or a prepositional phrase:
She moved her lipsas ifto smile.
They were shoutingas thoughin panic.
As ifandas thoughcommonly follow the verbsfeelandlook:
She feltas ifall her worries had gone.
They feltas thoughthey had been given the wrong information.
I’ve got so much work it looksas ifI’ll have to stay at home this evening.
In informal English,likecan be used in a similar way toas if, though it is not always considered correct in formal contexts:
It feltlikeit could snow at any minute.
See also:
As
Like
Althoughorthough?