Gore Vidal
Did you know?
Is It Grammatically Correct to Say as per?
Many wonder whether the as in as per is superfluous. Wouldn’t the phrase “per your instructions” mean much the same thing as “as per your instructions?” In that case, would it be incorrect to insert the extra word?
The fact is that both per and as per have existed in English in the sense “according to” for a very long time–since the 15th and 16th centuries, respectively. The choice of which to use (or avoid) is entirely a matter of taste. The more ponderous as per is often found in business and legal prose, or in writing that attempts to adopt a formal tone. It is not incorrect to use, but some find it overly legalistic and counsel avoiding it for that reason. On the other hand, it has been used to good effect in facetious mock-business-English (“as per the President’s shiny new Environmental Policy Act”). As in so many matters of diction, the tonal needs of a particular passage should guide your choice.
Examples of as per in a Sentence
Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 9 May 2024
Peloton’s shares were up over 13% in mid-morning trading as a number of private equity firms consider a potential buyout of the at-home fitness company, as per a CNBC report.
—Vinamrata Chaturvedi, Quartz, 7 May 2024
Further details of this agreement will be released by the client upon publication of the contract award as per provincial regulations.
—Miami Herald, 7 May 2024
Whenever an actor wrapped, the cast and crew, as per tradition, applauded on set, and each time Bing howled along.
—Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
The city of Saginaw’s poverty rate of nearly 35% is more than double Michigan’s average of 13%, as per the latest U.S. Census data.
—Joey Cappelletti, Quartz, 14 Mar. 2024
Standing near an artillery position last year, a junior Ukrainian sergeant, Maksim — who did not give his family name as per military rules — was boiling water in a small white kettle, a bag of Mad Heads ground coffee at his side.
—Daria Mitiuk Brendan Hoffman, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024
Clark quite simply delivered, as per usual, for the ascendant sport of women’s basketball, turning in a dream stat line—41 points, 12 assists, 7 rebounds—in a dream rematch of last year’s final.
—Sean Gregory, TIME, 2 Apr. 2024
The housing market is in flux, as per usual, but there’s some positive news for Riverside, Los Angeles, and San Diego County homeowners: home values are on the rise.
—Blake Bakkila, Sunset Magazine, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'as per.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near as per
Cite this Entry
“As per.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/as%20per. Accessed 12 May. 2024.
Copy Citation
Share