as if

conjunction

1

: as it would be if

It was as if he had lost his last friend.

2

: as one would do if

He ran as if ghosts were chasing him.

3

: that

It seemed as if the day would never end.

4

—used to say that something is not true, not possible, will not happen, etc.

"I am sure I am very affectionate," said Dora; "you oughtn't to be cruel to me, Doady!" "Cruel, my precious love! As if I would—or could—be cruel to you, for the world!"

—Charles Dickens

—sometimes used informally as an interjection to say that something suggested or claimed is impossible, incorrect, or ridiculously unlikely to be true

A simple collection of songs? As if. How about a conceptual ode to London's millennia-old history?

—Craig McLean

Big budgets? High-priced actresses? As if! The film cost a modest $13 million, a figure achieved by not casting stars, but rather stars-in-the-making …

—Nicholas Fonseca

Synonyms of as if

• like

Examples of as if in a Sentence

she looked as if she wanted to ask one more question before we left

Recent Examples on the Web

The placement is deliberate and symbolic, a visual touchstone giving silent counsel during one of the most consequential presidencies in American history—as if to perpetuate a visual dialogue between the 16th president and the 26th. —Douglas Brinkley, USA Today, 24 May 2026

Not only do the records feature scuff marks and price tags, but poems and doodles—as if the blankness was begging to be filled in. —Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 24 May 2026

And as if Cole’s return wasn’t enough, the Yankees hope to have more rotation reinforcements down the road. —Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 23 May 2026

But this album is even more a celebration of memory, with plenty of current happiness thrown in too — as if his recollections about his Liverpool boyhood and his contemporary mash notes to his wife, Nancy Shevell, occupied adjacent spots on his personal timeline. —Chris Willman, Variety, 23 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for as if

• biff
• cliff
• diff
• glyph
• griff
• riff
• schiff
• skiff
• sniff
• stiff
• tiff
• whiff

Kids Definition

as if

conjunction

1

: the way it would be if

it was as if we had never left

2

: the way one would do if

they acted as if they'd never heard of us

3

: that entry 2 sense 1a

it seemed as if the day would never end