| Hi everybody. My name is Alisha. In this lesson, I am going to talk about the differences between Like, As and Such as. And I am also going to explain some examples of when you might use these words. So let's get started. |
| I want to begin today with the word Like. So one of the ways we use the word Like is to make a comparison. When we want to compare two things or perhaps more, we can use the word Like to do this. The correct use of the word Like if you want to be very strict is using the word Like before a noun phrase. |
| So when you want to use the word Like or maybe you are guessing should I use Like or As which we will talk about a little bit later, make sure to think about the part of the sentence that comes after the word. So after your Like or As. Does it use a noun phrase only. Is there just a noun or maybe a noun phrase. If there's just a noun, then you should use the word Like. Like is the best choice. Like is the correct choice in that case. |
| Let's look at some examples of this. Okay, first one. My friend eats like a pig. So here I have the word Like making the comparison between my friend and a pig. So here, a pig follows the word Like. It's a simple noun. So I know that Like is correct because Like should be used before a simple noun or simple noun phrase. |
| Let's look at another example. She sleeps like a baby. Here we see the same pattern. A simple noun baby follows the word Like. So I know that Like is the correct choice here. |
| Last. They cook like professional chefs. So here, professional chefs is my noun phrase that follows the word Like. I know that Like is correct because I should use it before noun phrases. |
| We will take a look at some different examples later. What to do when this is not a noun phrase but please keep this in mind. We use Like to make comparisons when the comparison is just a simple noun phrase. |
| Okay. Let's look at a couple of other points. We can use the word Like to introduce examples. Maybe like a list when you're speaking or maybe when you're writing as well. So when you want to introduce a few examples of something, you can use Like to do this. |
| For example, I did lots of things last weekend like biking, hiking and mountain climbing. Here, I am introducing a list of activities, hiking, biking and mountain climbing. I use the word Like with kind of downward intonation to introduce that. |
| So I did a lot of things last weekend like biking, hiking. So you can hear like Like introduces that. So when I want to introduce the example, I can use this sort of downward intonation to do that. If, however, I want to ask someone for an example, I should use the opposite intonation. This is a very casual way to ask someone for an example. |
| Let's imagine a conversation. So person A says, I have so many ideas for the weekend. And B says, Like? |
| So here, the difference is that I am using an upward intonation Like to ask for an example. So person A introduced maybe some ideas, some activities to do for the weekend. B would like to hear some of the ideas. So B requests it with Like with upward intonation. So please keep this in mind. Your intonation is important. If you use different intonation, it might not be clear to the listener. So please keep this in mind when you're using the word Like. |
| Okay. Let's move on to the next point for today though, the word As. So, As is also used to make a comparison. However, the correct use of As is before a phrase that contains a verb. So when we looked at the word Like, we saw that we use Like before a noun or a noun phrase. So there's no verb that follows the word Like. With As however, if there is a verb in the phrase that follows the word, we should use the word As. |
| Let's look at some examples. He cooks just as my mother does. So here, I have a verb at the end of this sentence, just as my mother does. Just is just kind of an emphasis word showing that it's exactly the same as my mother does. So here because I have a verb in the part of the sentence that follows my comparison word, I need to use As. As is the correct choice here. |
| Let's look at another example. This is similar to the one I introduced with the word Like. Here, she sleeps as if she were a baby. Here, I've chosen If. Here, you see the word Were, a verb follows this comparison word. She sleeps as if she were a baby. So here also I am noting, she is not a baby but I am using the phrase, as if she were meaning, it seems as if. It seems that she is a baby. She is not a baby but I am comparing and I am making the comparison with the expression, as if she were. So I need to use As here. |
| Okay. Last one. We talk just as we did in college. So again, we see a verb follows the comparison word As, did in this case. So I need to use As. As is the correct choice here. |
| Now, although this is kind of the – I suppose the strict explanation of this, I should mention that native speakers often do not follow these rules. In many cases in casual conversations, native speakers tend to use the word Like for all comparisons. As may sound a bit more formal. So, it's very common, it's very natural to make mistakes with these even among native speakers. If you make a mistake, I don't think you should worry about it but if it's important to you to be very, very correct all the time, this is a good rule to follow. This is the correct way to use Like and As. |
| So remember, Like should come before a noun phrase. As should come before a phrase that contains a verb. That's the difference between these two. However, at least in American English, you will hear Like used very often to make comparisons. I myself do it. I don't use As so often in my everyday conversations for comparisons. I tend to rely on Like more. So maybe we will see this change - this rule change a little bit more over time. Who knows. |
| Anyway, let's continue on to the last point for today. The expression Such as. So Such as is – this is the set phrase. These two words are always together in this case and we use such as in the same way that we use Like for introducing examples or for asking about examples. However, such as just sounds more formal. So if I want to introduce an example but I am in a more formal situation like at work or perhaps with someone who is in a position above me or I just want to be more polite, I can use such as to describe the examples. |
| Here I have an example sentence. We need to improve our strategies in departments such as marketing, customer relations and product development. So here, I've listed three examples in this case, departments. And I introduced those with the word Such as or with the expression Such as. So Such as is introducing those in a more formal way. Therefore, we can use it again even in casual situations too like – but if you want to kind of elevate that sort of politeness a little bit like here another example, ideas such as hiking, camping and bowling were discussed for the company retreat. |
| So again, even if you're using kind of casual words to list – even if you're listing kind of casual examples, you can still use the word such as to introduce them. It just sounds a little bit more formal. |
| All right. Finally, then, just as we saw with the word Like, we can also use Such as to ask for examples and this is with upward intonation. So this same rule can apply to the expression Such as. So for example, I have so many ideas for the weekend such as, we can use the same upward intonation to ask someone for an example. It's just going to sound a little bit more polite if you choose Such as instead of Like. |
| So that's a basic overview of some of the differences between these three words or these three expressions. I hope that that was helpful for you. Thanks very much for watching this lesson and I will see you again soon. Bye bye! |
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