What's the difference between 'as much as' and 'as well as'?
John is your friend as much as he is mine. May I replace 'as much as' with 'as well as'? If yes, what's the difference between them? Thank you!

Question

What's the difference between 'as much as' and 'as well as'?
 John is your friend as much as he is mine. May I replace 'as much as' with 'as well as'? If yes, what's the difference between them? Thank you!

Answer

think of "as well as" as "also" or "in addition to".

So, "as much as" would mean that they are equally good friends. No one is closer to John than the other.

And "as well as" would mean that both are Johns friend. How good or bad friends they are is not important.

Answer

Thank you for your help!

Answer

'as much as' is speaking in terms of quantity, so John is just as good a friend to both people, as opposed to be more of a friend to another.  'As well as' just means John is a friend to both, it doesn't concern how much of a friend.

Does this make sense?

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!