Using than and then

I've read a lot of high school English papers and manuscripts for other writers. Two words that frequently cause confusion are the words than and then. Rarely do writers use than when they should use then; it's usually the other way around. Here are some tips to clear up the confusion.

• Use than in comparisons.

Use than to compare two people, places, things, actions, groups, activities, preferences, etc. The use of a comparative form - using an -er ending or the word more - often indicates the comparison. For instance, one thing may be bigger, shorter, faster, redder, or easier than something else. Or one thing may be more effective, more difficult, more inclined, more beautiful, or more current than something else.

She was much more interested in tasting the cranberry-apple pie than in making it.

I would rather suffer with New Jersey's allergies than live in Florida's heat.

The word then is never used to compare two things.

• The word then generally has some meaning relating to time. It can mean next in time or next in order, at that time or at another time, or can refer to something that happened in the past. Sometimes it can be used to mean therefore.

First, you double-check your measurements; then, you cut out the pieces.

Calculators didn't exist when I started teaching; I made the calculations by hand then.


In Brief: Use than, not then, in comparisons.