than
conjunction
- English function word
preposition
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L333896 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ðæn/ / /ðɛn/ / /ðən/
adv
Etymology: From Middle English than, thanne (“than; then”), from Old English þanne, a variant of þonne (“then; when; than”), from Proto-West Germanic *þannē, an alteration of *þan (“then; than”), from Proto-Germanic *þan (“then; than”), from earlier *þam, from Proto-Indo-European *tóm, accusative masculine of *só (“that”, demonstrative pronoun). Cognate with Dutch dan (“then; than”), German denn (“for; so”), German dann (“then”). Doublet of then.
- At that time; then.
conj
Etymology: From Middle English than, thanne (“than; then”), from Old English þanne, a variant of þonne (“then; when; than”), from Proto-West Germanic *þannē, an alteration of *þan (“then; than”), from Proto-Germanic *þan (“then; than”), from earlier *þam, from Proto-Indo-European *tóm, accusative masculine of *só (“that”, demonstrative pronoun). Cognate with Dutch dan (“then; than”), German denn (“for; so”), German dann (“then”). Doublet of then.
- Used in comparisons, to introduce the basis of comparison.
“Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine. The machine gun is so much more lethal than the bow and arrow that comparisons are meaningless.”
“The artist worried more than was necessary: there were a lot of people at the exhibition, more than came last year.”
- Because; for.
“If thou say yes, then puttest thou on Christ (that is, the wisdome of God, the Father) unkunning, unpower, or euil will: for than he could not make his rule so good as an other did his.”
“You shall also take the fine earth or mould which is found in the hollow of old Willow trees, rising from the root almost to the middle of the Tree, at least so far as the tree is hollow, for than this, there is no earth or mould finer or richer.”
name
Etymology: Borrowing from Burmese သန်း (san:) or Khmer ថន (thɑɑn).
- A surname.
- Thangadh, a town in the Indian state of Gujarat.
- A village in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.
prep
Etymology: From Middle English than, thanne (“than; then”), from Old English þanne, a variant of þonne (“then; when; than”), from Proto-West Germanic *þannē, an alteration of *þan (“then; than”), from Proto-Germanic *þan (“then; than”), from earlier *þam, from Proto-Indo-European *tóm, accusative masculine of *só (“that”, demonstrative pronoun). Cognate with Dutch dan (“then; than”), German denn (“for; so”), German dann (“then”). Doublet of then.
- Introduces a comparison, and is associated with comparatives, and with words such as more, less, and fewer. Typically, it seeks to measure the force of an adjective or similar description between two predicates.
“Patients diagnosed more recently are probably surviving an average of longer than two years.”
“No player is more skillful than Greg.”