Like and As – English In A Minute

Hi! I’m Tim from BBC Learning English,
here to tell you about two words we use to say
that things are similar.
We use ‘like’ as a preposition
before a noun or pronoun, and it means ‘similar to’.
He ran like the wind.
Not: He ran as the wind.
We use ‘like’, and not ‘as’, to compare appearances.
This house looks like a castle.
‘As’ can be used as a preposition.
It means ‘in the role of’.
Dan,
as your friend I have to say you’re not a good singer.
We often use ‘as’ to talk about people’s jobs.
I work as an actor.
Be careful using ‘like’ and ‘as’
because the meaning can change:
‘As your brother, I’ll try to help you’
means ‘I actually am your brother’.
Change it to ‘like’, and it means
‘I’m not your brother but I want to act in a similar way’.