As good a swimmer vs. as good swimmer

[Jupiter]

Hi teachers,

Please see the following:

He is ................as any of us.

1/ as good a swimmer
2/ as good swimmer
3/ a good swimmer

Which one is the correct answer? And why?

Thanks in advance

Jupiter

[Conchita]

Be daring and give it a try first! Which do you think is the right answer and why?

[Jupiter]

Hi Conchita,

I think 3/ a good swimmer is the correct one. But I'm not sure.

Could you shed some light on it?

Jupiter

[Conchita]

We do want to say that he is a good swimmer. At the same time, we want to say how good a swimmer he is. To do that we choose to compare him with us (all of us are good swimmers).

The conjunction 'as' means 'like' and is used to form clauses of comparison with the positive form of an adjective (or adverb): as ... as.

The sentence should therefore read:

He is as good a swimmer as any of us.