as it were

[ az; unstressed uh z ]

as inid est
as inas if
as inas though

Synonyms for as it were

i.e.
that is

MOST RELEVANT

WORD ORIGIN

c.1200, worn-down form of Old English alswa "quite so" (see also), fully established by c.1400. Equivalent to so; any distinction in use is purely idiomatic. Related to German als "as, than," from Middle High German also. Phrase as well "just as much" is recorded from late 15c.; the phrase also can imply "as well as not," "as well as anything else." Interjection of incredulity as if! (i.e. "as if that really could happen") is attested from 1995, an exact duplication of Latin quasi.

MORE RELATED WORDS FOR AS IT WERE

as if

conjunctionas though

as it were
as it would be
as might be
in such a way that
just as
just as if
just as though
so to speak

as though

conjunctionas if

as it were
as it would be
as might be
in such a way that
just as
just as if
just as though
so to speak

id est

adverbthat is to say

as it were
i.e.
that is