as if it were vs as if it was

Both 'as if it were' and 'as if it was' are correct, but 'as if it were' is more formal and grammatically correct. 'As if it were' is commonly used in formal writing and speech, while 'as if it was' is more informal and colloquial.

Last updated: April 04, 2024 • 468 views

Correct. This phrase is more formal and grammatically correct.

"as if it were"

This phrase is used to express a hypothetical situation or condition. It is commonly used in formal writing and speech.

Show examples from the web [+]

We write a letter as if it were from your sister.
At first, you behaved as if it were just fun.
Attack it, as if it were a precision military operation.
The sharp inspector Peluchonneau handles the operation as if it were the conquest of Egypt.
Ali... Indeed it raised as if it were a drug.
The individual machines can use this mirror as if it were a regular Debian server.
She spoke to it as if it were real.
Gravitational waves go through iron as if it were glass - totally transparent.
You say it as if it were terrible.
The parchment acted as if it were alive.
Treat it as if it were your own.
I stood there whistling, as if it were an ordinary day.
Sometimes I feel the danger as if it were so physical.
You speak about time as if it were an enemy.
I used the word postmodern as if it were OK.
Exactly as if it were in a healthy mother.
Carmen, youact as if it were your only daughter.
They're still analyzing it as if it were a virus.
However, some Web applications and frameworks use the 302 status code as if it were the 303.
Sensible adults often treat love as if it were a military campaign or gymnastics.

Alternatives:

as though it were
as if it had been
as if it would be
as if it could be
as if it might be

Correct, but more informal. This phrase is used in informal contexts.

"as if it was"

This phrase is used in informal language to express a hypothetical situation or condition. It is more commonly used in casual conversations.

Show examples from the web [+]

You could use the house as if it was yours.
He looks after The Priory as if it was his own.
Then he began composing, as if it was music.
A 7.62 round can pierce a car as if it was made of paper.
But I remember that day as if it was yesterday.
It's as if it was a grubber.
My mother spoke of it as if it was paradise.
This element brings light into the space as if it was a cannon-lumière.
The houseboat is furnished as if it was still inhabited.
To empathize is to experience another's condition as if it was our own.
The sensitivity was okay but as if it was through a dense fabric.
They drink as if it was the end of the world.
From this day on, I shall live every day as if it was my last.
Perhaps we will someday be able to create a new universe, almost as if it was a physics project.
They harvest fat suburban men like you - as if it was grain in a Soviet collective farm.
In former times people thought that the very last thing you saw in life would remain imprinted in your eyes as if it was a photograph.
It's nice to see you greeting everybody here at the party as if it was your own fabulous party.
They brought it about, as surely as if it was ordered by decree.
I see you as children so clearly now, as if it was yesterday.
The wind pushes your eyes away. but today, give me this day as if it was the last.

Alternatives:

as though it was
as if it is
as if it would be
as if it could be
as if it might be

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as if it were vs as if it was

"as if it were"

"as if it was"

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