PETS－2语法讲解(216)

She's been going around as if she owns the place.
　　对话
　　Ginnie: Have you seen the way that Debbie is behaving lately?
　　Vatsala: No, I was away all last week.
　　Ginnie: Well ever since she won the music prize she’s been going around as if she owns the place.
　　Vatsala: She's always felt a bit superior to the rest of us because she's so good at the piano.
　　Ginnie: There's more to life than playing the piano.
　　Vatsala: Not as far as Debbie's concerned.
　　金尼：你有没有留意戴比最近的举止？
　　瓦塞拉：没有，我上星期不在这里。
　　金尼：她赢得音乐奖之后，就一副不可一世的样子。
　　瓦塞拉：她向来都自以为高我们一等，因为她钢琴弹得好。
　　金尼：人生不只是弹钢琴啊。
　　瓦塞拉：但戴比可不这样想。
　　金尼批评戴比狂妄：She's been going around as if she owns the place。这as if改为as though或like都可以。
　　As if、as though是‘好像’的意思，其后接子句(clause) 。这子句假如是说目前情况，则‘有可能’的事情须用现在式动词叙述，‘不可能’或‘不真实’的事情须用过去式动词，子句假如是说过去情况，则‘有可能’或‘不可能’的事情都用过去式动词叙述，例如：(1)It looks as if it is going to be fine tomorrow（看来明天会是好天）。(2) She looks at me as if I were/was some sort of monster（她望着我，似乎我是什么怪物）。(3) While we were of the same rank, she spoke to me as if she were/was my boss（我们职级相同，但她跟我说话，语气就像是我上司一样）。第二、三句I、she之后用were,是正宗的‘假设过去式’;普通过去式was则是较随便的说法。
　　Like也可解作‘好像’，但严格而言，其后须用名词或代名词，例如：It is shaped like a book　（它的形状像本书）。今天，美国口语往往在like 之后也用子句，所以，说She's been going around like she owns the place也可以，只是这用法在谨严的写作中应该避免。
　　As if one owns the place直译是‘似乎那地方为其所有’，指大模大样、不可一世的样子，例如: He shouted to the sales clerks as if he owned the place.（他大摇大摆的向售货员吆喝）。