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as vs like

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as vs like

by advita » Fri Dec 10, 2010 10:30 am
The theory that sperm whales of southern ocean act as carbon sinks may take research to be proven , but the belief that these whales act like thieves can be easily proven through the recently recorded video.

1. act as carbon sinks may take research to be proven , but the belief that these whales act like thieves
2. act like carbon sinks may take research to be proven , but the belief that these whales act like thieves
3. act like carbon sinks may take research to be proven , but the belief that these whales act as thieves
4. act as carbon sinks may take research to be proven , but the belief that these whales act as thieves

pl explain b/w 1 & 4. pl explain...!!!!
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by arora007 » Fri Dec 10, 2010 11:15 am
I think it should be "like thieves" like is used for nouns whereas as is used for clauses...
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by Isaac@EconomistGMAT » Fri Dec 10, 2010 4:14 pm
'Like' is used to compare nouns, whereas 'as' is used to compare actions.

Examples:
He is like a little boy. (He is compared with little boy)
He acts as his father does. (the actions are being compared)
As John has done, Jane also ran for student council.

Think of like/unlike as comparing the essence of things/people and you should not see a conjugated verb next to like/unlike.
When you see 'as', if it is being used for comparison purposes, make sure the comparison is logical and is a comparison of verbs.
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by e-GMAT » Fri Dec 10, 2010 4:37 pm
You may also refer to a recent post that discussed the usage of "like" vs "as".
https://www.beatthegmat.com/like-vs-as-t ... tml#322429

In addition to the role of "as" for comparisons as indicated by Isaac above, "as" also plays the following role:
X as Y => X actually functions as Y

A) I work as a librarian.
The sentence implies that I function as a librarian.

Thus, when an actual function has to be represented, we use "as". In this case, "as" is typically followed by a noun.
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