Definition Synonyms
Definition of than - Reverso English Dictionary
Conjunction
1.
linguisticsused to introduce the second element in a comparison
- She is taller than her brother.
2.
grammarused to introduce an exception or contrast
- He had no choice other than to leave.
Expressions with than
💡 Discover popular phrases, idioms, collocations, or phrasal verbs. Click any expression to learn more, listen to its pronunciation, or save it to your favorites.
not more than two
The event will last less than three hours.
doing something late is better than not doing it
He finally apologized, better late than never.
more difficult than it appears
Solving this puzzle is harder than it looks.
take more food to eat than you can actually finish
At family dinners, Mark always has eyes bigger than his stomach.
be wise enough not to do something foolish
You should know better than to lie to your parents.
with the greatest importance or desire
I love my family more than anything in the world.
having a romantic or sexual relationship
They are more than friends; they are dating.
extremely satisfied or content
He was more than happy with the results of the test.
indicates hidden complexity or depth in something
There's a lot more to it than meets the eye.
barely useful but still worth having
This old phone is better than nothing.
family ties and loyalty are stronger than other relationships
Blood is thicker than water, so help your siblings first.
cause more harm than benefit in a situation
The new policy did more damage than good.
simple to suggest but hard to achieve
Starting a new business is easier said than done.
in multiple respects or aspects simultaneously
The project was successful in more ways than one.
situation causing more problems than benefits
His advice did more harm than good in the end.
happens most of the time or very often
More often than not, he arrives early.
unexpected and usually unwanted extra result or effect
They got more than they bargained for when hidden repair costs appeared.
express that stopping problems early is better than fixing them later
Prevention is better than cure, so wear your helmet.
extremely slow in movement or progress
The old computer is slower than a snail.
in the fairly near future
We need to finish the project sooner rather than later.
some tasks may be done easier by two or more people working together
Two heads are better than one when solving difficult problems.
extremely clean or pure
The kitchen was whiter than white after the deep cleaning.
more harmful than having no value
His advice was worse than useless and caused more problems.
solution causing more harm than the problem
The new policy was a cure worse than the disease.
Origin of than
Old English, þanne (then)
Terms with than included in their meaning
💡 A powerful way to uncover related words, idioms, and expressions linked by the same idea — and explore meaning beyond exact word matches.
time
indicating a time later than another event
non-human
any creature other than a human
time
earlier than a specific time or event
position
lower in spatial position than something else
superiority
more excellent than others in a group
measurement
having greater size than something else
number
being one more than seven
numerical
being one more than seventeen
small quantity
not many but more than one
quantity
being one more than fourteen
landforms
elevated area of land smaller than a mountain
counting
denoting a quantity consisting of one more than eight
mathematics
number equal to one more than eight
small amount
no more than, just
above
higher than something else
number
amounting to one more than six
quantity
being one more than sixteen
physical size
having less length or height than another
quantity
being one more than fifteen
number
being ten more than fifty
size
having less size than something else
frequency
occasionally rather than all the time
measurement
having a height greater than average
mathematics
number equal to one more than nine
Examples of than in a sentence
This book is more interesting than the last one. She felt more relieved than worried. Rather than complain, he decided to help.
View all translations of than
Click below to see the appropriate translations facing each meaning.
- French:que, ...
- German:als, ...
- Italian:di, che, ...
- Spanish:que, ...
- Portuguese:do que, senão, ...
- Chinese:比, 除了, ...
- Japanese:より, よりも, ...
- Arabic:مِن, سِوَى, ...
- Hebrew:מֵאֲשֶׁר, ...
- Russian:чем, ...
- Ukrainian:ніж, крім, ...
- Hindi:से, अलावा, ...
icon to discover related terms: analogies, antonyms, common collocates, words with same roots, umbrella terms… Try with happening or hunch.
icon next to the first example to see two additional options and learn to use new vocabulary naturally.
icon to save words you want to revisit. You can also save a specific meaning by clicking on the