より (Than) Japanese Grammar Lesson
Grammar Type: Particle
Essential Meaning: Than / More X than Y
Construction:
- Noun + より
- E.g. これより [Than this]
- E.g. 魚より [Than fish]
- Noun + であるより
- E.g. 先生であるより [Than being a teacher]
- (Verb / い-Adjective) informal nonpast + より
- E.g. 話すより [Than speaking]
- E.g. 食べるより [Than eating]
- E.g. 高いより [Than being expensive]
- な-Adjective Stem + なより
- E.g. 静かなより [Than being quiet]
Notes:
- より marks the standard of comparison in a comparative phrase. It takes the place of “Than” in a sentence such as “More X than Y“.
- より is preceded by either a noun phrase or a sentence.
- E.g. Preceded by a sentence: 図書館で勉強するほうがうちで勉強するよりよくできる。[I’m better at studying at the library than studying at home.]
- E.g. Preceded by a noun phrase: 漢字は平仮名より難しい。[Kanji is more difficult than hiragana.]
- Verbs that precede より are typically nonpast, but there are some idiomatic exceptions to this rule.
- E.g. その試験は思ったよりやさしかった。[That test was easier than I expected.]
- も can optionally be appended to より to make the comparison more emphatic. One exception to this is that も cannot be used with より in sentences that imply “There is no other way than X“.
- E.g. 日本語はスペイン語より(も)おもしろい。[Japanese is more interesting than Spanish.]
- E.g. これよりほかに方法はない。[There is no other way than this.] も can’t be used in this case.
- E.g. バスでいくより仕方がない。[There is no other way than to go by bus.] も can’t be used in this case.
Example Sentences:
日本語はスペイン語よりおもしろい。[Japanese is more interesting than Spanish.]
車で行くのはバスで行くより安い。[Going by car is cheaper than going by bus.]
私は旅行するよりうちにいたい。[I’d rather stay home than travel.]
これよりほかに方法はない。[There is no other way than this.]
バスでいくより仕方がない。[There is no other way than to go by bus.]
漢字は平仮名より難しい。[Kanji is more difficult than hiragana.]
林さんは私より速く走れる。[Hayashi-san can run faster than me.]
僕はステーキより魚の方が好きだ。[I like fish more than I like steak.]
図書館で勉強するほうがうちで勉強するよりよくできる。[I’m better at studying at the library than studying at home.]
それは赤というより茶色に近かった。[That was closer to brown than to red.]
日本語を勉強したかったら、アメリカの学校で勉強するより日本へ行きなさい。[If you want to study Japanese, go to Japan rather than going to an American school.]
WILD Examples:
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