As…as Comparisons

Equality

Use as + adjective/adverb + as to show two things are equal in a quality.

Example: “She’s as tall as her brother.”

Inequality

Use not as + adjective/adverb + as (or not so … as) to show one lacks equality.

Example: “This task isn’t as easy as that one.”

2. Forming Positive “As … As” Comparisons

Adjectives

Use as + adjective + as to compare qualities.

• My car is as fast as yours.
• This cake is as sweet as that one.
• He is as strong as his father.
• Her solution is as clever as mine.
• The beach is as beautiful as the mountains.
• This problem is as difficult as the last.
• His jokes are as funny as hers.
• The room is as bright as a studio.
• Her handwriting is as neat as a machine.
• Their team is as skilled as ours.

Adverbs

Use as + adverb + as to compare how actions are performed.

• He runs as quickly as I do.
• She dances as gracefully as a swan.
• They speak English as fluently as natives.
• I write as neatly as you.
• He solves puzzles as easily as she does.
• We work as hard as our colleagues.
• She sings as well as the professionals.
• The machine operates as smoothly as expected.
• He reacts as calmly as a surgeon.
• They learn as fast as native children.

Quantities with Nouns

With countable nouns, use as many + noun + as. With uncountable nouns, use as much + noun + as.

• We have as many chairs as tables.
• She drank as much coffee as her friend.
• They own as many cars as we do.
• He spent as much time as I did.
• We gathered as many signatures as needed.
• She has as many ideas as him.
• They used as much water as allowed.
• I ate as many cookies as you.
• He earned as much money as last month.
• We made as many copies as requested.

3. Forming Negative “Not As … As” Comparisons

To deny equality, put not before as…as. You can also use not so … as for a more formal tone.

• Your house is not as big as theirs.
• She’s not so tall as her sister.
• This story is not as interesting as that one.
• He doesn’t run as fast as she does.
• The coffee is not as hot as I expected.
• It’s not as simple as it seems.
• They are not as organized as we are.
• The project is not so difficult as last time.
• Her response was not as quick as mine.
• They are not as experienced as our team.

4. Special Structures and Clauses

Clauses After the Second “As”

When the second part is a full clause, you can omit the auxiliary verb.

• She runs as fast as he (does).
• They arrived as early as we (did).
• He studies as hard as she (does).
• She cooks as well as he (does).

“The same … as”

Use the same + noun + as for exact sameness.

• Her bag is the same color as mine.
• They have the same idea as us.
• This shirt is the same size as that one.
• We live in the same house as before.
• He got the same result as last time.

Equal Actions (adverbs & “as well as”)

With verbs, we typically compare using an adverb: verb + as + adverb + as (e.g., runs as fast as). You’ll also see the fixed phrase as well as: can swim as well as…

• He can swim as well as his father.
• She sings as beautifully as a professional.
• They dance as gracefully as experts.
• He writes as clearly as a journalist.
• She teaches as effectively as her mentor.

Useful Add-ons

• just/quite/nearly/almost + as … as (e.g., “almost as old as”)
• nowhere near + as … as (e.g., “nowhere near as difficult as”)
• Multipliers: twice/three times + as … as (e.g., “twice as long as”)

5. Common Mistakes

• Omitting as:
  • Incorrect: “She’s tall her sister.”
  • Correct: “She’s as tall as her sister.”
• Mixing comparatives and equalities:
  • Incorrect: “She’s more tall as her sister.”
  • Correct: “She’s as tall as her sister.”
• Wrong verb agreement in clause omissions:
  • Incorrect: “She runs as fast as he run.”
  • Correct: “She runs as fast as he (does).”
• Using more … as:
  • Incorrect: “as more interesting as”
  • Correct: “as interesting as”
• Forgetting the second as:
  • Incorrect: “He is as tall her brother.”
  • Correct: “He is as tall as her brother.”