The main uses of ‘As’

Main uses of AS:

• 1.  Comparative which denotes equality: 

Comparativo para igualdad to be as…. as….. o para negar la igualdad… is not as…. as

He is as old as me. We are the same age.

She’s wearing the same shirt as I am= We’re both wearing the same shirt.

I drink as much as he does. We both drink the same amount.

Your car is twice as large as mine.

para indicar “ dos veces más….. que”   twice as…  as.

•2  Introducing a clause:

as you know= like you (already) know

Como (ya) sabes…

as I told you like I (already) told you

Como te he dicho….

As we were late, we hired a cab. Because we were late, we took a taxi.

as=since= because= due to the fact that….ya que, dado que, puesto que, ….

Puesto que llegábamos tarde, cogimos un taxi. 

• 3 At the moment, at the time when, while:

As a soldier, my uncle used to travel a lot. When he was a soldier, my uncle traveled a lot.

As a child, I often played ball with my dog. When I was a child, I often played ball with my dog.

As I grow older, I’m becoming more interested in politics. Getting older, I’m becoming more interested in politics.

Al hacerme mayor, comprendí….

Cundo me hice mayor,….

En español tenemos la construcción en infinitivo o en imperfecto. Incluso en indefinido.

Al salir del ascensor, la vi.

Cuando salía del ascensor la vi. 

La vi cuando salí del ascensor.

Aunque son mínimas las diferencias, en inglés equivale a “as”

•  4 In the form of, in the role of, in the function of, acting as:

As a paying customer, I demand better service. I am a paying customer, therefore I want better service.

Dado que soy un cliente y que pago,

Como cliente que soy, exijo

En mi condición de cliente, exijo….

•  5. Some commonly used expressions:

as well =also, too

as far as I am concerned =if you ask me, for all I know, in my opinion. En lo que a mí respecta, En cuanto a mí,en mi opinión…

as yet =so far = up to this point in time… hasta ahora, 

such as for example, like…. tal(es) como   

We´ve got a lot of trouble, such as…..