as it were

Meaning

1. used when a speaker is giving his or her own impression of a situation or expressing sth in a particular way

   Teachers must put the brakes on, as it were, when they notice students looking puzzled.

In the movies · 1,118

• Uh... Sisters in arms, as it were?The Hustle2019
• get you, as it were, going, if I...The Trip2011
• the Word of God in bulk, as it were.O Brother, Where Art Thou?2000
• So I sort of had to make me own way, as it were.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire2005
• to put my affairs in order, as it were.National Theatre Live: Vanya2024
• In your infancy, as it were...Deathtrap1982
• Now, I understand that to be your bread and butter, as it were.We Are Marshall2006
• There's no bill at the end of it, as it were.Sicko2007

Learn it in full scenes

• The Trip2011
  • Steve and Rob Set Off
  • Steve and Rob Share a Room
  • The Michael Caine Impression Duel
• Deathtrap1982
  • Sidney's Play Flops on Opening Night
  • Sidney Rants About Being Written Out
  • Sidney Plots to Steal a Play

From the same entry

• as against
• as and when
• as for
• as from… of
• as if though
• as it is
• as to
• as you do
• may as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb
• as yet