• 4. The subjunctive mood in adverbial clauses of comparison (or manner)

The Subjunctive Mood is used in adverbial clauses of comparison (or manner) introduced by the conjunctions as if and as though (the latter is more literary - как будто; будто). The idea following as if, as though is ‘untrue’ or ‘unreal’.

Note: When the idea is real, the Indicative Mood is used.

1. If the action of the subordinate clause is simultaneous with that of the principal clause the Past Subjunctive of the verb to be (the form were) is used; with other verbs the same meaning is expressed by the Past Indefinite/the Past Continuous of the Indicative Mood.

• She speaks/spoke about him as if she knew him well. Она говорит/говорила о нем так, как будто она его хорошо знает/знала.

• You can’t go on spending money as if you were a millionaire.

• He is not her child. She talks to him as if he were her child.

• He paid no attention to us as though we didn’t exist.

2. If the action of the subordinate clause is prior to that of the principal clause the Past Perfect/the Past Perfect Continuous of the Indicative Mood is used.

• She speaks/spoke about him as if she had known him for years. Она говорит/говорила о нем так, как будто знает/знала его много лет.

• Her eye are red as if she had been crying.

• Our life goes on as though nothing had happened.

• The dog rushed at me and licked my hands in a frenzy of delight as if I had been away a long time.

3. If the action of the subordinate clause follows that of the principal clause, the form would + Infinitive is used.

• She smiled at me as if she would greet me. Она улыбнулась мне, как будто хотела поприветствовать меня.

• She looked at me as if she would ask me a question.

The rules of the sequence of tenses are not observed in this kind of clauses.

Note: When the idea is real, the Indicative Mood is used:

• He smiles as if he is happy. = He is really happy.

• Cf. He smiles as if he were happy. = He is unhappy.

• She talks as if she is enjoying her new job. = She is really enjoying it.

Here is a summary of patterns in comparative clauses

True statement (fact)	Verb form after ‘as if/as though’
1. He does have a brain in his head. Sandra doesn’t know everything. Harry’s only 40. He isn’t an old man.	Sometimes he acts as if he had no brain in his head. I don’t like Sandra. She talks as if she knew everything. Why do you talk about him as if he were an old man?
2. He has met her. She didn’t read the book.	He acts as though he had never met her. She discussed the book as if she had read it.
3. She will be here. She didn’t want to ask me a question.	She speaks as if she wouldn’t be here. She looked at me as if she would ask me a question.