Do I have to add 'as' in the following sentence?
It was (as) clear as water
I ran a search on ngram and didn't find much difference between the two options.
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1Useful sources: 1) Scroll down to Fixed expressions: dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/ellipsis; 2) ell.stackexchange.com/a/73733/21520; 3) Swan's Practical English Usage, 203.11: "We use the structure as... as... in a lot of traditional comparative expressions. 1. as cold as ice 2. as black as night 3. as hard as nails. The first as can be dropped in these expressions in an informal style. She's hard as nails."– athlonusmDec 23, 2019 at 11:45
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1 Answer
Technically yes - you are using a simile, and as you are comparing attributes you really need to say it is "as [x] as [y]". If you are finding examples where it has been omitted, these are probably just examples of colloquial speech where care has not been taken.
- As cute as a kitten
- As happy as a clam
- As light as a feather
- As blind as a bat
- As bold as brass
You could say instead:
It was clear like water.
answered Dec 23, 2019 at 11:34
