: in accordance with : according to
as per your instructions
Phrases
as per usual
: in the accustomed or habitual way : as usual
As per usual I tried to see into Myra's mind and as per usual I got nowhere at all.Gore Vidal

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Is It Grammatically Correct to Say as per?

Many wonder whether the as in as per is superfluous. Wouldn’t the phrase “per your instructions” mean much the same thing as “as per your instructions?” In that case, would it be incorrect to insert the extra word?

The fact is that both per and as per have existed in English in the sense “according to” for a very long time–since the 15th and 16th centuries, respectively. The choice of which to use (or avoid) is entirely a matter of taste. The more ponderous as per is often found in business and legal prose, or in writing that attempts to adopt a formal tone. It is not incorrect to use, but some find it overly legalistic and counsel avoiding it for that reason. On the other hand, it has been used to good effect in facetious mock-business-English (“as per the President’s shiny new Environmental Policy Act”). As in so many matters of diction, the tonal needs of a particular passage should guide your choice.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Nothing different from normal there, but nearly two pulls as per usual. Paul Tassi, Forbes, 6 Jan. 2023 Farmers say that their loans and other expenses have to be paid as per usual, so the payment in installments, based on unknown variables, does not benefit them. Supriya Vohra, Quartz, 19 Dec. 2022 The legendary five-borough race will, as per usual, start on the other side of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in Staten Island before winding its way through Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Manhattan, finishing 26.2 miles later in Central Park. Corey Seymour, Vogue, 4 Nov. 2022 And as per usual, Smitty the Clown, played by Father Patrick Smith, took the ice after the first period. David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Oct. 2022 And of course, the red carpet style was off the hook, as per usual. Maggie Zhou, refinery29.com, 12 Sep. 2022 While day and date releases are eligible, VOD-only releases, as per usual, are not. Alex Ritman, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 July 2022 While this week's Wednesday episode premiered as per usual, fans may notice the show is missing from the CBS official schedule, which means Big Brother will not be airing tonight. Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 22 July 2022 The internet, as per usual, did not hold back in skewering Chait’s hyperbolic statement that DeSantis was anything close to totalitarian in nature. Alexander Hall, Fox News, 7 July 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'as per.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1569, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of as per was in 1569

Dictionary Entries Near as per

Cite this Entry

“As per.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/as%20per. Accessed 31 Mar. 2023.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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