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I won't ever forget that moment. The moment I wish never was. I just stepped out of my work that got a call from my mother and came to know the most horrible news that my grandma who raised me and I loved her more than my mother passed on. I remember when I heard that, suddenly time stopped and my ears began to buzz. It was just like......................

a) as if the whole world collapsed over my head.
b) as if the whole world crumbled over my head.

I wonder which choice works here? To me they both work, but I doubt if natives consider "over my head" as redundant.

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    I think crumbled under my feet would be better for the crumbled option, but It was as if my whole world had collapsed/crumbled without the 'over my head' sounds fine
    – Smock
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 12:54

1 Answer 1

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More common usage would be:

"the whole world collapsed around me." or "the whole world crumbled around me."

but since this is clearly fiction, you are allowed a degree or two of "poetic licence" and there are loads of similar similes available, with slight adjustment, such as "a hole opened up beneath my feet"

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  • Thank you @Mile Brockington. Do you mean "over my head" as a simile is understandable / common?
    – A-friend
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 13:13
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    I'm saying that it is understandable, but NOT common. Incidentally "It was just like as if ..." as initially suggested by you, isn't too great.
    – MikeB
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 13:15
  • I wonder what would sound better @Michael Brockington.
    – A-friend
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 13:18
  • The comment by smock has a much better-sounding / normal example: "It was as if ..." or "It was just like ..." is fine too, but don't mix the two.
    – MikeB
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 13:24
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    Yes, both are fundamentally the same phrase.
    – MikeB
    Commented Jun 20, 2019 at 16:26

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