A compound comparative adverb (from hos + per, 'as indeed') that introduces likeness or analogy, typically at the head of a clause. It appears frequently in Jesus' parables and comparisons: 'just as Jonah was three days in the belly of the great fish' (Matt 12:40), 'just as the tares are gathered and burned' (Matt 13:40). Paul also favors it in theological analogies, comparing the body of Christ to a human body (1 Cor 12:12) and Adam to Christ (Rom 5:19). The word intensifies simple 'as' (hos) with an emphatic particle, yielding 'exactly as' or 'in just the same way.' Spanish 'como' and 'asi como,' French 'comme,' and German 'gleichwie' all reflect the comparative function.