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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.
Examples of as per in a Sentence
Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 25 Nov. 2025
Further strength is provided by micrometre-sized particles of alumina and silicon nanoprecipitates embedded in the ‘cement’ matrix, as per the release.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 24 Nov. 2025
China accounts for some 40 percent of that growth, as per a report from the Global Times.
—Marni Rose McFall, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
The state of Indiana has so far issued partial November SNAP payments for recipients, and benefits will be paid out as per usual beginning in December.
—Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for as per
Cite this Entry
“As per.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/as%20per. Accessed 29 Nov. 2025.
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