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  • Hi, welcome back to www.engvid.com . I'm Adam. Nice to be here again.

  • Today, we're going to look at comparisons. And the reason I want to do this is because I've noticed that

  • many people make a very common mistake when they're talking about comparisons. So first,

  • there are two types of comparisons; two ways of comparing, okay?

  • And we're going to focus on one of them. We're going to focus on the difference between "like" and "as".

  • But I also want to look at this a little bit: "more than", or "____-er than", "as something as," et cetera.

  • because I want to make sure that you understand that these are two different ways of comparing, okay?

  • So when we use "more," and usually an adjective -- "more"+ adjective + "than", for example,

  • "This car is more expensive than that car", or "-er" - "This car is cheaper than that car."

  • Or "as ____ as" - "This car is as expensive as that car", okay?

  • What we are comparing with these ones, we're comparing "qualities": speed, height, weight,

  • cost, shape, and so on. When we use "like" and "as", we are comparing things to things.

  • We are comparing actions to actions, okay?

  • The big thing, the big difference you have to pay attention to is, don't mix "than" with "as" or "like", okay?

  • And don't mix this "as _____ as", with this "as", okay? That's the main thing we want to concentrate on.

  • So let's look at "like" and "as". What is the difference between these two? "Like" is a preposition.

  • It is always followed by a noun, okay? "The flower is blue like the sky",

  • okay? We're talking about comparing the two things.

  • "As" is always followed by a clause. "As" is a conjunction followed by a clause.

  • If you remember: what is a clause? Yes, it is a group of words that must include a subject and a verb, okay?

  • So "as", subject, and verb. "She treats me as I would like to be treated",

  • okay? We're talking about the treatment, how she treats me. How I want to be treated.

  • Those are the two things we're comparing, okay?

  • So before I give you some more examples, a very common expression in English.

  • I want you to tell me which is the correct one: "Do as I say, not as I do";

  • or "Do like I say, not like I do". Which of these is correct?

  • If you guessed the first one, you're right. Because it's "as" + subject + verb. That is a clause, okay?

  • But before I continue, I want to say one thing to you, and I hope this makes you feel a little bit better about yourself.

  • Native English speakers mix these two all the time.

  • So if you're studying grammar and you're listening to native English speakers, and you're trying

  • to understand the difference, and they use this one (like) incorrectly many times, don't worry about it.

  • Many people use "like" when they should use "as" but they don't even realize it.

  • It is so common that it's becoming almost acceptable. It's wrong, but acceptable.

  • Anyway, we're going to look at a few more examples, and then you'll understand better the difference between "like" and "as".

  • Okay, so here we have a few more examples to really show you how the differences work between "like" and "as" and

  • what you have to pay attention to. So first let's look at these examples.

  • "He looks like a Martian." What am I comparing here? What am I comparing?

  • I'm comparing "he" and "Martian" -- same look, right?

  • But I'm comparing two people and that's why I'm using "like", okay? "He speaks like a preacher."

  • If you're not really sure what a preacher is, a preacher stands in a church

  • and says, "Oh you should do this and you should do that, because..." well, probably God, but hey, it's up to them.

  • "He speaks like a preacher." So he and the preacher are very similar. "He speaks as a preacher does",

  • so here remember, subject and verb. Are the sentences the same? Not exactly.

  • Here we're comparing him and a preacher. Here we're comparing speaking styles, the way they speak, okay?

  • So because of the way he speaks, him and the preacher are very similar -- "like".

  • But his speaking, his action, and the preacher's action are very similar, okay?

  • So because he speaks as a preacher does, he is like the preacher. I hope that makes sense, good.

  • "She treats me like a dog." So before I said she treats me as I want to be treated, but

  • sometimes she treats me like a dog. So what am I comparing? I'm comparing me and the dog,

  • we're the same. We receive the same treatment from her.

  • Okay, now, a little bit more formal and sometimes you'll see this. Somebody says, "Oh, I like it."

  • And you want to agree. You want to compare your feeling: "as do I". So one thing you have to be careful of,

  • here the subject and the verb have switched order. You have the verb first, the subject second.

  • This is quite acceptable, very formal.

  • If you're not sure how to use it, especially in writing, don't use it. Somebody says,

  • "Uh,who came to the party?" "Well, Linda came, as did Tom and Jerry."

  • The cat and the mouse, I'm not sure if you know them.

  • But "as did Tom and Jerry" -- the verb came first, the subject came second -- very formal.

  • Otherwise, if you don't want to do it, "I like it." "I do, too." Easier, no "as".

  • Or, "He speaks as Kennedy used to." So we're talking about Kennedy's grandson.

  • We saw him give a speech to a large audience. We say "Wow, he speaks as his father used to", right?

  • It means in the same way, the same approach, the same aura, the same carriage.

  • Okay, so that's one thing. Now sometimes you might see "as if" or "as though".

  • Basically, it means you're comparing an unreal situation, right? "She is shopping as if there were no tomorrow."

  • So A; you have the "if" with the word, the subjunctive, that's a whole other lesson.

  • You can keep that in mind. But "as if there were no tomorrow": you have a full clause after the "as if".

  • So it's sort of like "like", but it's such an unreal situation,

  • and then we're talking about an action that we use "as if", okay?

  • Again, there's no real clause here, because of the inversion, but just remember it's an unreal situation.

  • But having said that, most native speakers will not say this.

  • Most, or I don't know most, but many native speakers will say "She is shopping like there's no tomorrow."

  • What does it mean? Tomorrow everybody's going to die, so she wants to get as much things today as she can.

  • It's a very common expression. Most people understand this expression as "like".

  • "Like" is incorrect, but acceptable.

  • One last thing I want to mention. A whole different use of "as" and "like".

  • "As your boss" -- because I want you to understand this, so there's no confusion --

  • "as" here means "in the position of". So here "as" is not a comparison.

  • It is a preposition telling you 「I'm in this position".

  • So "as your boss" -- I am your boss, I have the power to forbid you from using Facebook at work.

  • But if you say "like your boss", then you're comparing. Then you're showing a similarity--"like" your boss.

  • So your boss thinks this. I agree, I think so too.

  • So "Like your boss, I forbid you from using Facebook at work." Maybe I'm the assistant boss.

  • He's the president, I'm the vice president. "Like him", means I agree with him, we are similar.

  • "...you can't use Facebook at work." And if you do use Facebook at work, be careful -- a lot of bosses think like this.

  • Okay, so if you have any more questions go to www.engvid.com . There's a quiz there. You can practice more of this stuff.

  • You can leave questions and comments,

  • and also subscribe to my channel on YouTube. I'll see you again real soon, thanks.

  • Learn English for free www.engvid.com

Hi, welcome back to www.engvid.com . I'm Adam. Nice to be here again.

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