especially "as" Father was away in France.

[sitifan]

Mother was worried because little Alice was ill, especially as Father was away in France. (Gaokao, 1994)

What does the conjunction "as" mean here?

 

[emsr2d2]

It can be used to replace "because".

Is Gaokao the name of a book or an author? Whichever one it is, we also need the other bit of information.

 

[sitifan]

It can be used to replace "because".

Is Gaokao the name of a book or an author? Whichever one it is, we also need the other bit of information.

The National College Entrance Examination (NCEE), commonly known as the gaokao (高考; gāokǎo; 'Higher Education Exam'), is a standardized college entrance exam held annually in mainland China.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaokao

 

[emsr2d2]

The National College Entrance Examination (NCEE), commonly known as the gaokao (高考; gāokǎo; 'Higher Education Exam'), is a standardized college entrance exam held annually in mainland China.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaokao

If you use something from that exam again, please make sure you explain what it means in post #1.