Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

COMPARISONS OF SIMILARITY

467

As … as

467a

When comparisons of degree are made between things which are similar or the

same, then the comparative clause structure as + adjective/adverb + as + phrase

or clause is frequently used:

Is the Sultan of Brunei 

as rich as the Queen of England?

They are 

as keen to join in as we are.

Property in Guanzhou isn’t 

as expensive as in Hong Kong.

Because of the currents, they had swum out 

as far as they dared.

He doesn’t smoke 

as much as he used to.

all the better

all the more

any the wiser 

none the wiser

any the worse

no worse

none the worse

766 | Comparison

Cambridge Grammar of English

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The negative of as … as may be not as … as, or not so … as. The form not as … as

is by far the more frequent:

This new dentist is 

not as good as my old one.

It’s 

not as cold as it was yesterday.

The second quiz was 

not so easy as the first.

These two extremes are 

not so contradictory as they might seem. 

(or: These two extremes are not as contradictory as they might seem.)

When used with attributive adjectives in a noun phrase introduced by the

indefinite article a/an, the word order is as/not as/not so + adjective + a/an +

noun + as:

It was 

as happy a marriage as anyone could ever dream of. 

It’s 

not as difficult a task as I thought.

It turned out to be 

not so big a room as they said it was.

A–Z

37 Ever