As if, as though, and like in Canadian English

Abstract

This article traces the history of the minor complementisers as if, as though, and like (when they follow evidential verbs such as seem and look) in Canadian English. By the 21st century, both as if and as though were rare in Canada, while like appeared to have become popular (López-Couso and Méndez-Naya 2012b). The Victoria English Archive (D’Arcy 2011–2014, 2015; Roeder, Onosson, and D’Arcy 2018) is used to map out the change in a combination of synchronic and diachronic spoken data. Results show that as if and as though are unusual even in the earliest speakers, which puts spoken Canadian English at odds with contemporaneous writing (Brook 2014). However, this unexpected register difference may explain why the complementiser like caught on in North American dialects of English sooner and more readily than in the United Kingdom – where a robust as if and as though in speech would have remained barriers.