as it were

Idioms  

1. 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.

---

Example Sentences

The game, as it were, is to get Malcolm to the party.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

After years at war – or performing military service as it were – they’re back to pick up where they left off with their lives, music and fans.

From Salon • Mar. 27, 2026

She stated that “reader and writer sit down to a game, as it were, with the odds, of course, altogether on the latter’s side.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

The proof of Akangbe Ogun's pudding, as it were, is writ large in the monumental sculptures, structures in fantastical formations that attest to his mastery of his art, on view all over the Osun Grove.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026

Giving lessons “on the hoof,” as it were, was proving to be a mighty challenge.

From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood