As long ago as the fourteenth century, an Englishman, Sir John Hawkwood, made the remarkable discovery that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their life work destroyed by gangsters. 《新概念英语3 A noble gangster》
早在14世纪,英国人约翰.霍克伍德就有过非凡的发现:"人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
as long ago as与as long as
as long ago as整体相当于一个介词，是描述时间状语的，表示“早在….”。而as long as则表示“只要”这两个词组不要搞混。
The west-coast line was electrified as long ago as 1974.
西海岸铁路线早在1974年就实现了电气化。
Acupuncture was practised in China as long ago as the third millennium BC
中国早在公元前3,000年就已开始采用针灸疗法。
I knew him as long ago as the year 2000.
在使用as long ago as后，后面接的时间词语就不要再加上其他介词如in了。
as long as有两个含义：
一、与……一样长；时间上与……一样长
The credits seemed to last almost as long as the film!
演职人员字幕持续的时间几乎与这部电影一样长！
They're welcome to stay here as long as they like.
他们在这里愿意住多久就住多久。
Take as long as you like, dear boy.
小伙子，随你花多长时间都行。
Customers often defer payment for as long as possible
顾客常常会尽可能地拖延付款。
Anyone who has tasted this life wants it to carry on for as long as possible.
任何过过这种日子的人都希望它持续得越久越好。
The implication is that this battery lasts twice as long as other batteries
言外之意是，这种电池的寿命是其他品牌电池的两倍。
He has been on a diet for as long as any of his friends can remember
在朋友的记忆中，他一直都在节食。
There's a list of repairs as long as your arm.
有一份长得要命的修理单。
此种用法时（即同级比较时）：在否定句中，可以用：as（so） long as;但是，肯定句中，只能用as long as；这个考点从小学一路考到考博都是经常性考点，一般在改错题中：
I haven't known him as[so] long as you.
我认识他的时间没有你长。
It didn’t take as [so] long as I expected. 花的时间比我预料的短。
二、as long as作为一个连词组合含义：只要（如果）、既然、由于；as long as=so long as
可引导条件、时间、原因状语从句：
Friends are like books. You don’t need a lot of them as[so] long as they are good.
朋友如同书籍，在精不在多。
I don’t care so [as] long as you are happy.
只要你高兴，我就无所谓了。
I don’t care so [as] long as she lets me be with her son. 只要她让我和她儿子在一起，我不在乎。
You can take my car as [so] long as you drive carefully. 你可以用我的汽车，只要你小心点儿开。
You may use my dictionary as [so] long as you don’t keep it too long. 只要使用时间不太长，你可以用我的词典。
We don't mind who gets the credit so long as we don't get the blame
谁受到表扬无所谓，只要我们不挨批就好。
The president need not step down so long as the elections are held under international supervision.
只要选举在国际监督下进行，总统就不用下台。
I squared it with Dan, who said it was all right so long as I was back next Monday morning
我征得了丹的同意，他说只要我下周一早上能回来就行。
My father didn't mind whom I married, so long as I could stand on my own two feet and wasn't dependent on my husband.
只要我能够自食其力，不依附于自己的丈夫，嫁给谁我父亲倒是并不介意。
So long as what you do is right, I'll go along with you.
只要你们做得对，我都随着。
So long as one keeps calm, one doesn't feel the heat too much.
心静自然凉。
He will be all right so long as you don't touch his sore spot.
只要你不提起他的伤心事，他是没有什么的。
The next time, I had my camera ready to record what you see here, one of several dozen such pictures, So long as she had a slice to eat, she never bother the one on her head ．
第二次,我准备了相机来记录你现在看到的景象,这是几十张类似照片中的一张。只要她有一片吃的,她就不会在意头上的东西。
高考真题-
They'll respect you as long as you play fair.
只要为人正直，别人就会尊敬你。
As long as you have your health, nothing else matters.
只要身体健康，其他任何事都无关紧要。
As long as you're happy, that's all that matters.
只要你幸福，这就是最重要的事情。
Nothing will change as long as the workers continue to accept these appalling conditions.
只要工人继续容忍这种恶劣的劳动条件，情况就不会有任何改变。
As long as staff are smart, it does not matter how long their hair is
员工只要聪明，头发留多长没什么关系。
You can phone me at work as long as you don't make a habit of it.
你可以上班时给我打电话，只要别一来二去打上瘾了就成。
As long as I deliver the goods, my boss is very happy.
只要我做好本职工作，我的老板就很高兴。
I don't actually mind being sampled as long as people give credit where it's due.
只要人们在适当处标明出处，我其实并不在乎自己的音乐被人节录。
The interior minister said he would still support them, as long as they didn't break the rules
内政部长说，只要他们不违规，他仍然会支持他们。
She was allowed to do her own thing as long as she kept in touch by phone.
只要她保持电话联系，她就可以随心所欲地生活。
I told Norman I would invest in his venture as long as he agreed to one proviso
我告诉诺曼只要他答应一个附带条件，我就会为他的项目投资。
Bill agreed to take with me –as long as I didn’t tell anybody else.
比尔答应和我一起去，只要我不敢说任何人。
The WTO cannot live up to its name as long as [if] it does not include a country that is home to one fifth of mankind.
只要世贸组织不接纳一个占人类人口五分之一的国家，它就不可能名副其实。
（如果世贸组织不接纳一个占人类人口五分之一的国家，那它就不可能名副其实。）
I can come as long as I can leave at 4:30 p.m.
如果下午四点半能离开的话，我就能来。
As long as you’re here, we might as well talk about your last games.
既然（由于）你在这里，我摸不妨谈一谈你最近的这次比赛。
As long as you’re going, I’ll go too.
既然你要去，那我也去。
As long as you act mean, you can’t expect anybody to do anything for you.
由于你行为卑劣，你不可能指望有人会来帮助你。
Can one even talk of stability in the Middle East as long as the conflict is still unsettled?
冲突尚未解决，又何谈中东的稳定呢？
三、注意：as[so] long as作引导从句的连词时，可以和provided （that）或providing （that）通用，只是后者在语体上更正式。
Provided that you have the money in your account, you can withdraw up to £100 a day.
只要账户存款足够，每天可提取不超过100英镑。
We shall go provided that the weather is fine.
只要天晴, 我们就去。
I will come provided I have the time.
假如有空，我一定来。
We'll buy everything you produce, provided of course the price is right.
当然了，倘若价格合适，我们将采购你们的全部产品。
Provided that you exercise due care, there is no reason why you shouldn't live to a great age.
只要你适当地注意，你完全可能享有很高的寿命。
And it was easy enough, provided that you could avoid being caught in the act.
而且逃起来也容易，谁会在搞事儿的时候给人当场擒拿？
The other banks are going to be very eager to help, provided that they see that he has a specific plan
如果看到他有具体的计划，其他银行会很愿意提供帮助。
Any two persons may marry in Scotland provided that both persons are at least 16 years of age on the day of their marriage
在苏格兰，如果双方均年满16岁就可以结婚。
I do believe in people being able to do what they want to do, providing they're not hurting someone else...
我真的认为人们只要不伤害别人，自己想做什么就可以做什么。
Providing they do not panic, I believe that their chances of survival will be beyond 95 per cent.
如果他们不慌乱，我相信他们生还的概率将在95%以上。
I will agree to go provided that ( providing that) my expenses are paid.
如果帮我支付费用，我就同意去。
I will go providing that my expenses are paid.
要是我的费用有人代付我就去。
Provided it was fine we would have a pleasant holiday.
如果天气好, 我们的假日真的有可能过得非常愉快。
I will come provided (that) I am well enough.如果我身体行,我就来。
