[Grammar] as if/as though

[kadioguy]

Practical English Usage 3rd.

74
as if and as though

1 meaning
As if and as though are both used to say what a situation seems like. They can refer to something that we think may be true.

It looks as if/though it's going to rain.
It sounds as if/though John's going to change his job.

They can also be used to talk about things which we know are not true.

I feel as if/though I'm dying.
She was acting as if/though she was in charge.

2 tenses
When we talk about things which we know are not true, we can use a past tense with a present meaning after as if/though. This emphasises the meaning of unreality. Compare:

- She looks as if she is rich. (Perhaps she is.)

He talks as if he was rich. (But he is definitely not.)

- You look as though you know each other.

Why is he looking at me as though he knew me? I've never seen him before.
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Please notice the text in blue.

Does it mean the following?

When we talk about things which we know are not true, we can use a past tense with a present meaning after as if/though, but it is also acceptable if we don't use one.

For example, when it is not true, we can say:

a. I feel as if/though I'm dying.
b. I feel as if/though I was/were dying.

c. She was acting as if/though she was in charge.
d. She was acting as if/though she had been in charge.

(a), (b), (c) and (d) are all OK.

Am I right?

 

[capcap23]

To me,

I feel as if/though I'm dying. // she feels like she is really dying

I feel as if/though I was/were dying. // she knows she isn't dying but she feels like so

She was acting as if/though she was in charge. // it depends on context whether she really was or not

She was acting as if/though she had been in charge // she was in charge from before but not at that moment they talked to each other if it is true that she had been in charge and it depends on too whether she really had been or not

not a teacher

I added later the red part

 

[kadioguy]

According to Practical English Usage 3rd. (at post #1), I would think when it is not true, we can say:

a. I feel as if/though I'm dying.
b. I feel as if/though I was/were dying.

c. She was acting as if/though she was in charge.
d. She was acting as if/though she had been in charge.

(a), (b), (c) and (d) are all OK.

Am I right?

Could any native speakers join the discussion?

 

[Tdol]

d. She was acting as if/though she had been in charge.

This one doesn't work well for me as it places her authority further back than her actions.

 

[jutfrank]

a) is okay, but I would say I feel like I'm dying or It feels like I'm dying. If I really was dying, I probably wouldn't say that.
b) is grammatical, but it doesn't sound like a natural thing to say.
c) is good.
d) is grammatical too, but clearly the 'being in charge' is prior to the 'acting', so for that reason it makes little sense outside of the right context.