de parcă

de parcă

1. (informal or literary) as though, as if

   Synonym: ca și cum

   Deși e bogat, trăiește de parcă nu ar avea niciun ban.

   Even though he’s rich, he lives as though he didn’t have a penny.

   Ascult prelegerea, de parcă aș înțelege ceva.

   I’m listening to the lecture, as if I understand anything.

The difference between de parcă and parcă is mainly grammatical: de parcă is a conjunctional phrase in itself, whereas parcă is an adverb connected to the previous sentence without any conjunction (asyndeton). Additionally, the use of the latter in contemporary non-poetic language is more unchiseled and informal than the former. Both are most fittingly followed by a clause in the conditional mood, but this is often forgone colloquially.