as it were
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Seemingly, in a way, as in He was living in a dream world, as it were. A shortening of “as if it were so,” this idiom has been in use since Chaucer's time (he had it in his Nun's Priest's Tale, c. 1386). Also see so to speak.
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CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
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Question 1 of 7
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Words nearby as it were
asinine, sinking feeling, a, ASIO, Asir, -asis, as it were, A sizes, ask, ask after, askance, Ask, and it shall be given you
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
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