Do you know the difference between "then" & "than"?
Asked by
Meatwad (
143
)
September 2nd, 2008
from iPhone
I’ve seen countless people here on fluther using then, where they should use than! What gives? Are people really that ignorant?
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25 Answers
Then refers to time.
Than is for comparison.
right?
then = next / following
than = either / or
shh! you can just hear our beloved English language go right down the crapper!
Either/or? I’m not sure I follow that one.
simone has it right for most circumstances.
Yes, people really are that ignorant ;)
Really, I think sometimes it’s just a “brain fart” and sometimes a genuine lack of understanding.
Or sometimes we are doing two things at once and make a mistake.
Than how come it keeps happening over and over? It seems like ignorance more then just a slip-up once in a while.
JP, if you’re doing two things at once, than stop it! :-)
I like this thread better then most.
Well than, I’m glad I asked!
Eye didn’t no their where so many idiots.
sorry, lefteh, I didn’t see your answers before I plunged in. I’m not one to step on someone else’s puns.
It’s okay. Grate minds think alike.
[going to bed now, before I say anything else stupid]
Put down the pun, and no one gets hurt!
Now, will someone mention YOUR and YOU’RE? And how about YORE?
September 3, 2008, 2:03 AM EDT
well, since we’re veering a bit, I can’t stand when someone bastardizes “couldn’t care less”!
@strat: I do that ALL THE TIME when I’m talking…always catch and correct myself, but 20 years of hearing it the wrong way is so hard to undo! I don’t do it when I’m writing, though, so that’s something, right?
I have opened Pandora’s box.
Apologies are offered.
September 3, 2008, 2:06 AM EDT
yeah, let’s just shut that baby before we waste too much time NOT enriching our lives, as is the custom here in Flutherville.
“So let it be written; so let it be done.”
September 3, 2008, 2:13 AM EDT
I like to quote Yul Brynner, whenever possible.
September 3, 2008, 2:16 AM EDT
I think Moses shall have been a FOOL! Etc, etc, etc!
Here’s a tip from a lesson on distinguishing between the two:
“The Bottom Line
Than is used only in comparisons, so if you’re comparing something use than. If not, then you have to use then. What could be easier than that?”
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